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IN  THE  HEBRIDES 


ILLUSTRATED  BOOKS  OF  TRAVEL. 


BY  MRS.  MACQUOID. 

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CHATTO   &  WINDUS,  PICCADILLY,  W. 


IN  THE  HEBRIDES 


BY 


C.   F.   GORDON    GUMMING 

AUTHOR  OF  *'AT  UOUM.  IN  riJI,"    "A  LAOY's  CRUISB  IN  A  FKBNCH  MAN-OF-WAK 


"fibs  fountains " 


"  From  the  dim  ihieluig  on  the  misty  Island 
Monntains  divide  us,  and  a  world  of  seas  ; 
But  stilt  our  hearts  are  true — our  hearts  are  Highland, 
And  we,  in  dreams,  behold  the  Hebrides." 


A  NEW  BDITION 
triT/I  AUTOTYPB  FACSIMILE  AND^TJif^^TY-TJVO  ILLUSTRATIONS 

(>*^  '  -  ■         ■   •       .  ^ 

lonlion 

CHATTO   AND  WINDUS,  PICCADILLY 

1883 


iAU  riikis  merved] 


^    • 


r 

\ 


INTRODUCTION. 

The  dreamy  summer  in  the  Western  Isles  which  funiished 
the  notes  for  the  following  pages,  was  immediately  succeeded 
by  a  prolonged  spell  of  most  delightful  wanderings  in  the 
Himalayas. 

On  this, — my  first  journey  to  the  Far  East, — ^my  attention  was 
forcibly  arrested  by  many  very  striking  analogies  between  many 
of  the  customs  and  legends  of  Western  Islanders,  and  those  of 
Eastern  Highlanders. 

These,  again,  suggested  such  a  multitude  of  unaccountable  links 
between  various  semi>obsolete  customs  in  Christian  lands  of  the 
West  (which  are  undoubtedly  survivals  of  ancient  pagan  practice), 
and  those  which  form  part  of  the  daily  religious  life  in  Eastern 
lands, — ^that  my  volumes  attained  dimensions  somewhat  forbidding 
to  general  readera. 

I  have  therefore  deemed  it  expedient  to  select  such  notes  of 
my  summer  in  the  Hebrides,  as  appear  to  me  to  possess  most 
general  interest,  omitting  all  dryer  matter. 

These  notes  I  now  offer  to  all  my  kindred-wanderers  on  our 
own  romantic  Western  shores  and  Isles,  trusting  that  they  may 
therein  find  some  suggestions  which  may  add  interest  to  their 
own  summer  rambles. 

C.  F.  Gordon  Ccmmino. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  I. 

PAOB 

The  Mull  of  Cantjre — Campbelton— The  Scot-Dalriads— Eil-Eerran  — 
Churches  of  early  Saints — St.  Colomba  in  Cantyre  at  Kil-Colm-Keil — 
The  Ocean— Cantyre's  Dairy  Farms — The  Monastery  of  Saddell — 
Legend  of  Dunaverty— Kil-Cousland— St  Couslan's  Weddings — Kil- 
Kenan— St  Coivin's  Divorces — Macnahanish  Bay— Kelp-Bumers    .      1 


CHAPTER  ir. 

FROM   CAMPBELTON   TO   OBAN. 

Isles  of  Gigah  and  Islay — Meaning  of  Tarhert — Legend  of  the  Whirlpool — 
Isles  of  Elachnave,  Oronsay,  and  Colonsay — Oban— Dunolly — Dun- 
staffiiage — Seals— Old  Tombs — White  Stones— A  Lake  Village — 
Serpent-8luq)ed  Mound — American  and  other  Reptile-shaped  Mounds 
— Gaelic  Serpent  Lore 35 


CHAPTER  III. 

lONA. 

Sacred  Isles— The  Druid's  Holy  Isle— Brighit,  the  Fire  Goddess— Traces 
of  Pagan  Customs— The  360  Crosses— Rude  Stone  Monuments— 360 
Sacred  Stones  at  Mecca— Black  Stones— Magic  Crystals— Solar  Turns 
—St  Columba— His  Work— His  Death— Tonsure— Book  of  Battles- 
Jacob's  Pillow— The  Reilig  Grain- The  Nunnery— Massacre  of  the 
Monks— The  Ruins— The  Inn— Jackdaws— Hill  of  DunU— Druidic 
Circle— The  Bay  of  the  Boat— Pagan  Baptism 66 


Viil  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  IV. 

THE  INNER  HEBRIDES. 

PAQB 

Staffa— From  Oban  to  Skye—Lismore— Mull— Legend  of  Castle  Duart 
— Legend  of  Lochbuy — Legend  of  Loch  Awe — Isle  of  Canna— St. 
Michaers  Eve — How  observed  in  Barra— Nordereys  and  Sudereys— 
Isle  of  Muck — Wild  Boar  of  Scotland— Wolves — Beavers— Isle  of 
Rum— Scuir  of  Eigg— Proud  Lords  of  the  Isles— The  Isle  of  Mists    .  103 


CHAPTER  V. 

THE    QUIRAING. 

Uig— A  Terrible  "  Spate  "—Gaelic  Churches— Forms  of  Worship— Island 
Homes— Timber— The  Famine  of  1883 — Primitive  Agricultural  Imple- 
ments— No  Frost— Dr.  Johnson— Legend  of  Castle  Ustian — Glens  of 
the  Conan  and  of  the  Rah— The  Quiraing— Monkstadt— Duntulm — 
Midges — A  great  Sacramental  Gathering 121 


CHAPTER  VI. 

AFLOAT. 

A  Music-Room— Duntulm  Castle— Fladda  of  the  Ocean— Holy  Stones — 
Schloch  Maddie  Cave — Legend  of  McCrimmon — Water  Kelpies — 
Prownies — ^Legends — The  Kilt  Rock — Marine  Forests— Flat-fishes — 
A  Basaltic  Coast — The  Storr  Rock — The  Ross-shire  Coast — Legends 
of  St.  Malruba— Sacrifices  of  Cattle — The  Need-Fire— Start  for  the 
Herring  Fishing — Storms — King  Haco's  Fleet 164 


CHAPTER  VII. 

MODERN   CHIPS  OF   THE  OLD   BLOCKS. 

Holy  Wells  in  the  Hebrides  and  in  the  Highlands— Prohibitory  Statutes 
—Wells  for  the  Cure  of  Insanity — Pilgrims'  Rags— Traces  of  Sun  and 
Fire  Worship— Four  great   Festivals  —  Beltane  —  Midsummer  in 


CONTENTS.  IX 

I 

PAOIC 

Ireland,  Isle  of  Man,  Stonehenge— Hallow-e*en— All  Souls— Yule— 
Christinas— The  Burning  of  the  Clavie— Dread  of  giving  or  taking 
Pire— Festivals  in  the  Pyrenees,  the  Alps,  the  Baltic,  in  Paris,  in 
Edinburgh  and  London — Traces  of  Moon  Worship  —  An  Owl's 
Question 205 


CHAPTEE  VIII. 

FOOTPRINTS   OF   THE   PAST. 

Lonely  Chapels — Blended  Faiths— Sunwise  Turns — East  and  West 
Diyination  by  Smoke — Touch  of  a  Seventh  Son— The  Royal  Touch,  a 
Cure  for  Scrofula — Burial  of  a  Living  Cfx^k  for  Epilepsy— Legends  of 
Isle  Raasay — Of  Wild  Deer —Of  buying  a  Gale— Witchcraft — Drawing 
the  Tether— A  Milk  Charm  from  the  Isle  of  Uist— Ancient  and 
Modem  Witches— The  Evil  Eye— Making  Images  to  injure  a  Neigh- 
bour— Cats — Belief  in  Transmigration— The  Luck  of  leaving  a  House 
unswept — Dl-Luck  of  succeeding  an  Ejected  Tenant  ....  23f) 


CHAPTER  IX. 

THB   OUTER  HEBRIDES. 

The  Long  Island— Start  for  Harris— St.  Clement's  Cathedral— Tarbert— 
HandmHls — The  Thamis  —  Fincastle  —  Stomoway  —  Loch  Maddy 
Market — North  Uist — Machars— Shell-fish  and  Lobsters— Fords- 
Driftwood- Cornish  Blessings  —  Benbecula  —  South  Uist  — Dismal 
Homes— Wild  Fowl— Barra- Kisimul  Castle — Eriskay— Wreckers- 
South  Bemera  Lighthouse— Mingalay 269 


CHAPTER  X. 

ST.    KILDA. 

The  Sea- Fowl's  Kingdom— PrecioUs  Fulmar— Population— Means  of 
Living— Accounts  by  Martin,  Kenneth  Macaulay,and  Dr.  Macculloch 
— Infant  Mortality— Mysterious  Colds — "No  English"— A  Life  of 
Exile  — High  Morality — Primitive  Customs  —  Traces  of  Heathen 
Worship— Ravages  of  Small.pox— Lack  of  Boats       ....  321 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  XI. 

PAGE 

A   ROTAL   FUaiTIVB       .  .  .    338 


CHAPTER  Xir. 

LEGENDS    AND   FOLK-LORE. 

Tidal  Current  off  Yatemish—Scotch  Bagpipes— Associations—Dunyegan 
Castle — Legend  of  Somerled— MacLeods  and  MacDonalds — Ancestral 
Kelics— Fate  of  Lady  Grange— Summer  Nights— Seals — Cormorants 
—Star- Fish— Fish  accounted  fit  for  Food— Eels- Turbot— Of  Scale- 
less  Fish— Forbidden  Meats— Drawing  the  Nets— Lump-Fish— Jelly- 
Fish — Barnacle  Geese — Families  who  claim  Descent  from  Seal-Maidens 
or  Mermen— Corn-crakes 350 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

OIL   ON   THE  WATERS. 

Grey  Rain— Portree  Harbour— Becalmed— Whistling  for  a  Wind— Oil 
on  the  Waters- St  Kilda  Puddings— Shetland  Cods'  Livers— Oily 
Fish—  Fishermen  of  many  Lands  —Wrecks  averted  by  use  of  Oil — 
Mr.  Shields  at  Peterhead— Application  of  Oil  to  Life-buojrs- Wreck 
Register 375 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

FAREWELL  TO   T^E   ISLES. 

Three  Weeks  alone  in  the  Rock  Wilderness— A  Family'of  "  Haavelings  " 
—Yachtsmen— Sligachan  Inn— The  CuchuUins— Divers  Tourists— 
Loch  Corruisk— A  Good  Day's  Deer  Stalking— Old  Boar  Hunt— A 
Whale  Ashore— "5/oc«  PcjrcAA  "—Giant  Fossils  on  Isle  of  Eigg— 
Legends  of  Clan  Fights— The  Grave  of  a  Viking's  Daughter— Old 
Churchyards  of  Snizort,  Nigg,  &c.— Of  Funeral  Feasts— The  Skye 
Railway  foreseen  by  Local  Seers— Drive  vid  Balmacarra  and  Loch 
Alsh  to  Shiel  House  Inn— Eilean  Donan  Castle— Glen  Quoich— Fort 
Augustus— Castle  Urquhart 399 


LIST  OP  ILLUSTRATIONS. 

PAQS 

loKA  (Auiaype) FrarUispiece 

Old  Kibktard  of  Kil-Colm-Kbil.  The  Mull  of  Canttrb     To  face      14 

KnUCTARD  OF  KiLKEVAN 26 

Sb&pknt-shaped  Mound,  near  Oban To  face      47 

Coronation  Chair  in  WEgTMiNSTER  Abbey,  showing  the  Kino- 

MAKINO  Stone To/aee      86 

The  Cuchullins To/aee  119 

The  Lodge,  Uio 122 

DuNTULM  Cabtle To/oce  ]49 

The  Quiraxno  and  Basaltic  Coast 151 

The  Needle.    Quiraino 156 

The  Quiraino To/ace  157 

Schloch  Maddie  Cave To/ace  169 

The  Kilt  Kock 178 

EiLEAN  Alteveo 237 

Home-Sweet  Home! 301 

DuNTEOAN  Castle 851 

DumrEOAN  Castle To/aee  358 

Sets  Lassies 877 

The  Storr 380 

Portree  Harbour,  looking  to  the  Storr 881 

Loch  Corruisk,  Skte To/aee  407 

Cabtle  of  Exlean  Donan 423 

Glen  Quoich 425 

Cabtle  Urquhart To/aee  426 


ERRATA. 


p.  68,  last  line,  omit  Deisul,  i.  e.  Sunwise 

p.  69,  line  2,  read  built  it  after  the  Bduge,  biU  he  reversed  the  course  of 
circuit. 

p.  69,  line  2\,for  and  is  described  read  but  has  also  been  described  by 
travellers  as 

p.  70,  line  2,  omit  sunwise 

Burton,  in  his  pilgrimage  to  Mecca,  states  that  the  Moslem  circuit  of  cir- 
cumambulation  is  widdershin,  i.  e.  from  left  to  right— the  left  shoulder  being 
turned  towards  the  sacred  object,  whereas  the  Hindoo  and  other  nations, 
making  a  sununse  turn,  keep  the  right  shoulder  toward  the  sacred  object. 
This  statement  is  corroborated  by  pilgrims  to  Moslem  shrines  in  other  hmds. 


"SUNDAY   WAR." 

p.  204,  add  after  line  8 — The  ten  men  who  were  apprehended  were  carried 
to  Edinburgh  for  trial,  and  were  found  guilty  of  mobbmg  and  rioting,  but 
were  recommended  by  the  jury  to  the  utmost  leniency  of  the  Court  in  con- 
sideration of  their  ignorance  of  law,  their  habitiuil  good  character,  and  their 
strong  conviction  that  they  were  acting  in  defence  of  a  religious  obligation. 
The  offence  was,  however,  held  to  be  of  such  gravity  that  they  were  sentenced 
by  the  Lord  Chief  Justice  to  four  months'  imprisonment. 


IN   THE    HEBRIDES. 


CHAPTER  L 

"  Thi  beantifiil  lales  of  Qreeoe 
Fall  many  a  bard  has  sung  : 
The  Ides  I  love  best  lie  far  in  the  West^ 
Where  men  speak  the  Gaelic  tongue. 

"  Let  them  sing  of  the  sunny  South, 
Where  the  blue  iBgean  smiles, 
But  give  to  me  the  Scottish  sea. 
That  breaks  round  the  Western  Isles ! 

*'  LoYest  thou  mountuns  great, 
Peaks  to  the  clouds  that  soar, 
Oorrie  and  fell  where  eagles  dwell, 
And  cataracts  dash  eyermore  ? 

"  Lovest  thou  green  grassy  glades, 
By  the  sunshine  sweetly  kist, 
Murmuring  waves,  and  echoing  caves  1 
Then  go  to  the  Isle  of  Mist ! "— Shxbift  Niohouoh. 

Ibe  Man  of  Cantyre  —  Campbelton— The  Scot-Dalriads  —  Eil-Kerran  — 
Choidies  of  early  Sunta— St  Golomba  in  Cantyre  at  Eil-Golm-Keil— The 
Ocean — CSantyre's  Dairy  Farms— The  Monastery  of  Saddell— Legend  of 
Danaverty— Kil-Cousland — St  Gouslan's  Weddings — Kil-Kerran — St 
Ooivin's  IHvoroes— Macnahanish  Bay— Eelp-Bumers. 

It  was  on  a  lovely  morning  in  the  early  spring  that  we  started 
for  the  West  Coast,  without  any  very  definite  intention  as  to  where 
we  might  drift     Our  only  plan  was  to  spend  some  quiet  weeks 

1/  V  B 


2  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

in  the  most  out-of-the-world  place  we  could  find ;  one  where  my 
pencil  might  keep  me  busy,  while  my  brother  could  rejoice  in 
perfect  idleness  after  a  course  of  hard  reading ;  and  what  spot 
more  suitable  than  the  Land's  End  of  Scotland,  the  dear  bluff  old 
Mull  of  Cantyre,  which  had  already  given  us  so  many  pleasant 
days  1 — that  strange  peninsula,  in  form  like  an  outstretched  finger, 
about  forty  miles  in  length,  by  an  average  of  six  in  width,  extend- 
ing from  the  south  of  Argyleshire,  as  a  mighty  breakwater,  for  the 
protection  of  the  mainland  from  the  sweeping  of  Atlantic  storms. 

So  we  started,  but  without  reference  to  our  neighbours,  and  soon 
found  to  our  cost  that  they  were  keepiag  holy-day,  or  holiday,  as 
the  case  might  be.  It  was  a  Sacramental  Fast — very  solemn  to 
one  sectibn  of  the  community,  but  a  very  "  fast "  day  to  the 
majority.  Thus  it  came  to  pass  that  every  station  was  crowded, 
and  the  line  blocked  with  extra  trains,  and  hours  before  we 
reached  Greenock,  our  steamer  had  quietly  sailed  down  the  Clyde. 
So  far  as  we  were  concerned,  we  had  good  reason  to  rejoice  in  the 
delay,  as  it  enabled  us  to  test  the  unfailing  hospitality  of  one  of 
our  truest  and  oldest  friends, — but  I  fear  that  to  some  of  our  fellow- 
travellers,  tlie  delay  must  have  proved  a  serious  inconvenience. 

The  third  morning  found  us  under  way,  and  by  midday  we  were 
watching  the  changing  Hghts  on  the  Isle  of  Arran,  or  Ar-rinn— 
"  the  land  of  sharp  pinnacles  "  most  riglitly  named.  Dark  shadows 
were  drifting  over  the  granite  peaks  of  Goatfell,  and  those  of  Ben 
Ghoil,  the  "  mountain  of  the  wind,"  which  seemed  to  tower  so  high 
above  the  mist,  though  their  actual  height  is  only  about  2,875  feet. 

Here  and  there  were  little  clusters  of  tiny  brown  huts,  nestling 
in  the  shadow  of  the  great  hills,  and  human  beings  with  collie  dogs 
and  flocks  of  sheep  moved  to  and  fro,  like  atoms  scarcely  visible. 

As  we  passed  gloomy  Loch  Eanza,  with  its  dark  encircling 
mountains  and  old  ruined  castle  (once  a  royal  hunting-seat),  our 
attention  was  called  to  the  boats  of  the  oyster-dredgers ;  and  we 
marvelled  whether  the  oysters  of  Loch  Eanza  have  the  same  ear 
for  music  as  their  brethren  in  the  Firth  of  Forth,  who  require  a 
continuous  dredging-song  to  lull  them  to  their  doom,  so  that  the 
wily  fishers  must  perforce  keep  up  an  incessant  monotonous  chaunt, 


VITBIFIBD  FORTS.  3 

in  which  all  their  conversation  mast  be  carried  on.  Various  col- 
lectors of  old  ballads  have  from  time  to  time  gone  out  for  a  night 
with  the  dredgers,  hoping  to  add  new  songs  to  their  store,  but  all 
agree  in  saying  that  the  same  words  never  occur  twice  unchanged ; 
and  so  they  only  gain  the  bitter  cold  of  a  night  in  an  open  boat  in 
one  of  the  months  "  with  an  B,"  which  you  perceive  excludes  all 
the  bonnie  summer  nights.  One  allusion  to  this  graceful  fancy  is 
found  in  a  charming  ballad  which  begins : — 

"  The  herring  loves  the  merry  moonlight. 
The  mackerel  loves  the  wind, 
Bat  the  oyster  loves  the  dredging  song, 
For  he  comes  of  a  gentle  kind." 

Several  prominent  head -lands  were  pointed  out  to  me,  in  the 
course  of  the  day,  as  the  sites  of  so-called  Vitrified  Forts — strange 
relics  of  the  past,  concerning  which  nothing  ia  known  certainly. 
Among  the  many  theories  which  have  been  propounded,  none 
has  for  me  such  fascination  as  that  which  assumes  them  to  have 
originally  been  Fire-Temples,  the  altars  of  Bel,  the  Celtic  Baal, 
or  Sun-god. 

These  vitrified  circular  masses  are  generally  placed  on  some  com- 
manding height,  often  too  near  together  to  have  been  used  as 
beacon  lights.  The  stones  are  fused  into  glassy  masses,  the  inside 
more  perfectly  vitrified  than  the  outside,  as  would  naturally  be  the 
ease,  if  these  raging  fiery  furnaces  were  the  altars,  where  fire  burnt 
day  and  night,  and  where  animals  and  perhaps  human  sacrifices 
were  offered,  at  the  great  Baal  festivals.  We  know  that  long  after 
Christianity  was  introduced  in  Britain,  the  fire-worship  was  con- 
tinued; the  land  remaining  in  a  strange  twilight  state,  halting 
between  two  opinions — the  grossness  of  heathen  darkness,  miti- 
gated indeed  by  Christianity,  but  still  very  far  from  the  light  of 
perfect  day ;  the  people  in  general,  having  some  leaning  to  the  new 
laith,  but  a  strong  hold  on  the  old  idolatries. 

The  golden  sunset  fell  on  ALLsa  Craig,  and  the  bold  headland  of 
Davaar,  as  we  entered  the  fine  land-locked  harbour  of  Campbelton, 
wherein  lay  many  fishing-boats  of  all  sizes,  with  rich  brown  sails. 

•  B  2 


4  IK  THE  HEBRIDES. 

I  bethought  me  of  old  Pennant's  account  of  this  crowded  harbour, 
where  in  the  last  century  so  many  as  two  hundred  and  sixty 
«  busses  "  might  be  seen  at  once.  I  fear  that  the  Cockney  mind, 
picturing  a  l>us  of  the  present  day,  would  be  somewhat  disappointed 
to  find  so  very  dull  a  little  town  1 

Campbelton  is  chiefly  remarkable  for  the  amazing  fact  that  it  is 
the  means  of  annually  contributing  more  than  one  million  sterling 
to  the  Inland  Revenue,  in  form  of  whisky  duty  I !  That  is  to  say, 
the  distilleries  of  Campbelton  and  its  immediate  neighbourhood 
collectively  produce  upwards  of  2,657,000  gallons  per  annum,  and 
whisky-duty  is  ten  shillings  per  gallon.  Of  the  great  sum  thus 
represented  £705,560  was  actually  paid  to  the  Collector  of  Inland 
Revenue  at  Campbelton  in  the  year  ending  March  1883.  The 
surplus,  being  shipped  under  bond,  is  not  included  in  the  local 
payments.  However,  whether  exported  to  Glasgow  or  elsewhere, 
Campbelton  is  responsible  for  the  manufacture  of  this  enormous 
amount  of  Fire-Water  I  What  a  field  for  the  beneficent  Blue  Ribbon 
Army,  and  how  justly  might  they  plead  that  this  vast  amount  of 
barley  should  go  to  feed  the  thousands,  now  on  the  verge  of  starva- 
tion, throughout  our  own  North- West  I 

The  whiskies  of  Campbelton,  like  those  of  Lagavulin  and  Talisker 
(which  are  two  celebrated  distilleries  on  Islay  and  Skye),  have  at 
least  the  merit  of  being  accounted  first-class;  and  the  distillers 
give  so  good  a  price  for  barley  that  there  is  no  longer  any  induce- 
ment for  the  Highlanders  to  deal  with  the  smugglers,  who  in  very 
recent  times  had  stills  for  mountain-dew,  all  over  this  part  of  the 
country — so  extensive  a  seaboard  affording  good  scope  for  their 
trade.  The  Hebrideans  crossed  from  the  Isles,  to  Rhunahourine 
(the  Heron's  Point),  thence  marching  across  the  hills  to  Skipness 
in  bands  of  thirty  or  forty  armed  men,  whose  rough  shelties  were 
laden  with  heavy  creels  containing  the  moonlight  produce,  which 
was  then  sent  to  Glasgow. 

The  *'  stream  in  the  moonlight  which  kings  dinna  ken  "  has  not, 
however,  wholly  ceased  to  flow,  and  I  have  heard  of  sundry  mys- 
terious presents  of  kegs  of  ''the  crathur,"  very  superior  in  quality 
to  any  that  is  to  be  procured  from  the  large  stills^    And  although 


THE  SC0T-DALRIAD8.  5 

the  men  of  Skye  seem  to  have  given  up  this  illicit  business,  there 
are  still  many  quiet  nooks  in  the  dark  glens  of  Western  Boss, 
where  it  is  carried  on  in  secrecy  and  comparative  safety,  in  snug 
caves,  or  deep  hollows,  near  some  rippling  stream. 

Many  such  romantic  spots,  long  since  deserted,  do  I  know  in  the 
wilds  of  Banflfshire,  where,  in  the  heart  of  the  dark  fir  woods,  amid 
richest  purple  heather,  you  may  note  in  one  place  a  circle  of  white- 
stemmed  birches,  in  another  a  fringe  of  golden  broom  and  tangled 
wild  roses  clustering  round  a  deep  circular  cup,  where  once  the 
Biills,  worms  and  mash-tubs  were  concealed,  and  the  mountain  dew 
was  distilled,  but  where  now  the  greenest  and  richest  ferns  nestle 
in  the  cool  shade,  while  wood-doves  murmur  on  every  side — plea- 
sant play-grounds  for  children  on  bright  summer  days. 

Old  songs  are  not  yet  forgotten,  whose  gleeful  point  lay  in  telling 
bow  *'  The  Deil  ran  awa'  wi'  the  exciseman,"  and  that  official  is 
still  an  unwelcome  visitor  in  certain  remote  comers  of  the  land ; 
but  the  days  are  gone  by,  when  the  wild  Skipness  men  thought  it 
all  fair  play  to  fight  their  battles  with  a  revenue  cutter,  and,  having 
overpowered  her  crew,  to  turn  them  all  adrift  again,  without  oais 
or  tackle,  to  be  tossed  at  the  mercy  of  the  waves  I 

To  return  to  Campbelton,  or  as  it  was  anciently  called,  Dalruad- 
hein.  Kemcte  as  it  now  seems  to  us,  there  was  a  time  when  it 
was  the  centre  of  Scottish  life,  and  for  upwards  of  three  centuries 
it  was,  in  fact,  the  capital  of  Scotland.  This  continued  till  the 
reign  of  Kenneth  II.,  King  of  the  Scots,  who,  having  finally  sub- 
dued the  Picts,  and  merged  both  races  in  one  kingdom,  selected 
Forteviot,  in  Perthshire,  as  a  more  suitable  capitaL 

These  Dalriads  seem  to  have  come  over  from  Ireland  about  the 
year  502  A.D.,  and  to  have  founded  that  kingdom  known  in  ScottLsh 
history  as  Alba;  their  power  and  numbers  must  have  increased 
rapidly,  for  not  long  afterwards,  we  hear  how  the  King  of  Alba 
invaded  Ireland  and  fought  the  great  battle  of  Moyra,  famous  in 
old  song.  In  fact,  these  Scot-Dalriads  held  their  place  as  a  strong 
Celtic  race,  till  the  Norsemen  overran  the  land,  and  moulded  exist- 
ing institutions  to  suit  their  own  convenience.  In  later  days  James 
lY.  here  held  a  Parliament,  as  "  Parliament  Close "  still  attests. 


6  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

There  were,  however,  certaiii  turbulent  chiefs  who  would  by  no 
means  render  obedience  to  his  laws ;  more  especially  one  Macdonald, 
whose  castle  of  Cean  Loch  stood  on  the  very  spot  now  occupied  by 
the  large  Gastle-hiLl  Church.  In  order  to  keep  this  man  in  check, 
James  Y.  came  here  in  person,  and  repaired  the  old  fort  of  Kil- 
Kerran,  leaving  in  it  such  a  garrison  as  might  overawe  all  rebellious 
sul^jects.  But  before  the  King  had  got  clear  of  the  harbour,  Mac- 
donald  sallied  out  of  his  castle,  took  possession  of  the  fortalice,  and, 
in  the  sight  of  the  King,  hanged  the  new  governor  from  the  walls. 

This  old  castle  of  Kil-Kerran  stood  about  a  mile  from  Campbelton. 
A  very  laige  old  burial-ground,  close  by,  still  marks  the  spot  where 
St  ELieran,  the  Apostle  of  Cantyre,  first  taught  the  people.  The  cave 
in  which  he  lived,  the  Cove  a  Kieran,  lies  among  the  rocks  so  close 
to  the  sea,  that  you  cannot  enter  it  at  high  water.  At  all  times  it 
is  a  difEcult,  slippery  scramble.  Once  there,  you  find  a  fine  cave, 
with  a  dripping  well,  filling  with  clear,  sparkling  water  a  rock 
basin,  whence  the  Saint  drank.  And  beside  it,  on  a  great  stone,  is 
a  rudely-sculptured  cross,  where,  in  the  solitude  of  this  grand  wild 
temple,  guarded  from  all  human  intruders  by  that  barrier  of  mighty 
waters,  he  might  worship  his  God  undisturbed.  Of  his  church, 
once  the  most  important  in  Cantyre,  little,  if  any,  trace  now 
remains;  but  two  shafts  of  broken  crosses,  carved  with  galleys, 
figures  and  arabesques,  are  among  the  very  ancient  stones  in  the 
old  kirkyard. 

While  speaking  of  saintly  names  associated  with  this  town,  I 
cannot  forbear  to  remind  you  of  one,  the  mention  of  whose  birth- 
place cannot  fail  to  recall  to  multitudes  (and  assuredly  to  every 
Scotchman,  of  whatever  denomination)  the  name  of  the  great,  and 
good,  and  genial  Norman  Macleod — a  teacher  as  influential  and 
beloved,  and  one  as  unsparing  of  his  work,  as  the  mightiest  of  those 
Celtic  Fathers;  one  who  needs  no  canonization  at  the  hands  of 
earthly  Councils  to  rivet  his  hold  on  the  afiections,  and  his  influence 
on  the  life,  of  multitudes,  even  of  those  who  were  never  privileged 
to  hear  hia  voice,  but  who,  nevertheless,  were  followed  to  the  utter- 
most ends  of  the  earth  by  his  good  and  loving  words — so  tender, 
and  yet  so  strong  and  invigorating — learning  from  him  year  by 


ANCIENT  CHT7BCHES.  7 

year  sometbing  of  deeper  reverence  for  things  human  and  divine, 
and  perchance  catching  from  his  large-hearted  liberality,  something 
of  a  broader  and  more  glowing  charity,  such  as  would  fain  enfold 
the  whole  great  world  in  its  own  boundless  love.  Truly,  were  it 
only  for  having  given  birth  to  one  such  son  as  he.  Canty  re  may 
henceforth  claim  to  be  not  least  among  the  provinces  of  Scotland. 

In  the  market-place  of  Campbelton  there  stands  a  very  fine  cross 
of  hard  blue  whinstone,  covered  with  well-carved  figures,  foliage, 
and  runic  knots,  and  bearing  an  inscription, — but  whether  this  is 
Saxon  or  Lombardic  is  still  disputed.  It  is  supposed  to  have  been 
brought  over  from  lona,  where  at  one  time  there  stood  360  stone 
CToeses.  These,  the  Synod  of  Argyle,  in  a.d.  1560,  pronounced  to 
be  **  monuments  of  idolatrie,''  and  commanded  that  they  should  be 
thrown  into  the  sea.  Some,  however,  were  rescued,  and  taken  to 
old  churchyards  and  market-places  in  the  neighbouring  islands,  or 
on  the  mainland.  They  are  all  very  similar,  being  monoliths, 
generally  of  whinstone,  and  covered  with  elaborate  designs. 

The  most  casual  traveller  in  Argyleshire  cannot  fail  to  be  struck 
by  the  number  of  little  roofless,  fern-fringed,  chapels,  distinguished 
by  the  prefix  of  kU  or  cell,  marking  the  spot  as  that  where  some 
early  preacher  of  the  Cross  established  himself,  perhaps  in  yet 
heathen  days.  Such  are  Kil-Choman,  Kil-Michael,  Kilcoinan, 
Kilkeran,  Kilcoivan,  Kilkevan,  Kilcousland,  Kilraven,  Killdavic, 
Kileolan,  Kill-blaan,  Kil-ewen,  Killean,  Kil-Kenzie,  where  the 
graves  are  irregularly  scattered  in  picturesque  confusion  among 
Bandhills  or  grassy  knoUs.  Most  of  these  have  some  carved  stones 
— sometimes  knights,  sometimes  ladies,  always  swords. 

On  some  we  find  the  galley  of  the  Isles ;  on  others  deer-hunts, 
hounds,  otters,  creatures  like  griffins  with  wonderful  tails  of  scroll- 
work, winding  about  in  intricate  patterns  of  foliage  or  other  tracery ; 
sometimes  birds  fighting ;  sometimes  shears  or  other  implements  of 
work.  All,  or  almost  all,  are  alike  nameless,  covering  the  dust  of 
long-forgotten  heroes.  Some  have  niches,  in  which  lie  sculptured 
efBgies  of  bishops,  with  their  pastoral  crooks  and  mitres,  or  else 
knights  with  broadsword  and  battle-axe.  Many  have  one  or  more  of 
thoee  round-headed,  upright  crosses,  which  we  identify  with  lona, 


8  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

almost  all  of  a  grey  whinstone — a  hard  stone,  not  much  affected  by 
centuries  of  wind  and  storm.  Some  have  inscriptions  in  the  Saxon 
character,  unintelligible  to  the  unlearned. 

Some  of  the  sculptures  in  the  best  preservation,  are  in  the  chapel 
of  St  Cormac,  at  Kiels,  in  North  Enapdale  (north  of  Cantyre), 
where  there  are  an  unusual  number  of  such  memorials.  Indeed 
throughout  Knapdale,  such  links  to  the  past  are  especially  abundant, 
and  such  spots  as  Kil-Michael  Lussa,  Kiels,  and  Kilmory,  by  turns 
invite  attention. 

Some  very  interesting  remains  are  to  be  seen  on  the  Eilan  More, 
a  little  isle  at  the  entrance  to  Loch  Eillisport  Here  there  is  a 
small  chapel,  and  a  vaulted  chamber,  divided  into  two  cells,  one  of 
which  was  apparently  the  dwelling-place  of  the  hermit.  In  the 
other  is  a  stone  coffin,  supported  by  four  grotesque  figures.  On  the 
lid  is  the  figure  of  a  priest  in  his  cope,  surrounded  by  elaborate 
tracery.  Outside  the  chapel  lies  a  plain  stone  coffin  and  a  broken 
cross.  Another  cross  stood  on  the  highest  point  of  the  Isle ;  on  one 
side  was  depicted  the  Crucifixion,  with  the  women  standing  by; 
on  the  other,  elaborate  Kunic  knotting.  But  now  the  cross  has 
fallen,  and  oiJy  broken  fragments  remain. 

At  some  of  these  old  churchyards  there  now  remains  literally 
no  trace  of  the  ancient  cell,  only  the  silent  God's  Acre,  where  sleep 
so  many  generations  of  the  simple  folk,  whose  one  ambition  was  to 
die  where  they  were  bom,  and  where  they  lived  their  uneventful 
lives,  hoping  at  last,  to  be  laid  to  rest  beside  their  forefathers,  in 
this  quiet  spot,  which,  from  their  earliest  infancy,  has  been  to  them 
a  place  of  awe  and  reverence. 

Such  lonely  burial-grounds  always  recall  to  my  memory  Words- 
worth's lines : 

"  Of  Church  or  Sabbath  ties 

No  vestige  now  remains.    Yet  thither  creep 
Bereft  ones,  and  in  lowly  anguish  weep 
Their  prayers  out  to  the  wind  and  naked  skies. 
Proud  tomb  ub  none ;  but  rudely  sculptured  knights^ 
By  humble  choice  of  plain  old  times  are  seen 
Level  with  earth,  among  the  hillocks  green." 

The  majority,  however,  still  retain  some  ruins  of  the  old  churches. 


CHUBCHTABDS  ON  THE  SEABOARD.  9 

OthezSy  again,  do  not  betray  their  character  by  their  name,  as 
Patchen,  an  enclosore  among  the  sand-hills,  where  the  old  tombs 
are  half  overgrown  with  bent,  ^nd  half  veiled  with  salt  drifting  sand. 

Many  a  sad  story  these  churchyards  of  onr  seaboard  could  tell ; 
of  terrible  nights  in  which  all  the  bread-winners  of  a  hamlet  have 
been  lost,  and  none  but  lads  and  women  left  to  fight  life's  battle. 
Such  women,  though !  so  brave  and  hardy ;  and  withal  so  leal  to 
the  dead.  In  one  of  these  quiet  little  churchyards  in  Yorkshire  is 
a  simple  headstone,  and  the  fishers  will  tell  you  that  the  man  who 
lies  there,  was  drowned  one  awful  night,  and  the  sea  did  not  give  up 
her  dead  till  the  end  of  eleven  weeks  ! — ^from  December  till  March ; 
and  during  all  those  bitter  wintry  days  his  wife  followed  every  re- 
eeding  tide,  scanning  each  ledge  and  crevice  of  the  black  rocks,— each 
pool  beneath  the  slippery,  tangled,  sea-weed.  Yainly  did  the  neigh- 
bours urge  her  to  forego  the  hopeless  search.  Early  and  late  the  sad 
solitary  woman  was  at  her  po8t>  reckless  of  the  beating  storm  and 
bitter  frosty  wind,  still  keeping  her  weary  vigil ;  and  at  last,  when 
almost  despairing  of  success,  her  prayer  was  granted,  and  the  waves 
brought  him  to  her  feet  So  she  buried  him  in ''  mother  clay," 
and  watched  by  the  green  mound  for  upwards  of  thirty  years,  ere 
she  was  laid  by  his  side. 

It  really  is  curious  to  remark  how  largely  the  numerous  early 
saints  of  this  district  have  left  their  impress  on  the  land.  In  look- 
ing over  a  list  of  the  parishes  in  Argyleshire  I  find  the  following 
goodly  proportion,  which  still  retain  the  name  of  some  once  vener- 
ated father,  and,  of  course,  each  parish  may,  and  generally  does, 
contain  several  churehes  dedicated  to  othen  of  perhaps  equal  note. 

In  other  counties  the  parishes  with  this  prefix  are  comparatively 
few,  as  here  shown. 

Parishes  in  ArgyJe-^ire. 

Kil-finichen  and  Eil-vickeon  (lona),  Eil-Brandon  and  EjI- 
chattan,  Kil-calmonell  and  Kil-berry,  Eil-choman,  Kil-charenan, 
Kil-dalton,  Kil-mun,  Eil-malic,  Kil-finan,  Kil-arrow,  Eil-meny,  Kil- 
lean,  Eil-chenzie,  Eil-malie,  Eil-martia,  Kil-morich,  Eil-modan, 
Kil-more,  Kil-ninian,  Kil-inver,  Kil-melford,  Kil-bride  (St  Bridget). 


10  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

Paiishes  in  Renfrew, 

Kil-lellan,  Kil-barchaziy  Kil-malcolm. 

ParUliea  in  Ayr, 
Kil-mamock,  Kil-birnie,  Kil-wiimiiig,  Eal-biide,  Kirk-Michael, 
Kirk-Oswald. 

Parishes  in  Lanark. 
East  Kil-bride,  Kirk-Patrick-Juxta. 

Parish  in  Linlithgow, 
Kirk-liston. 

Parish  in  Edinburgh, 
Kirk-Newton. 

Parishes  in  Haddington, 

Preston-kirk,  White-kirk. 

Parish  in  Berwick. 
Lady-kirk. 

Parish  in  Peebles, 
Kirk-urd. 

Parishes  in  Selkirk. 
Kirk-hope,  Sel-kirk. 

Parislies  in  Roxburgh, 
Elirk-town,  Ash-kirk,  Kel-so. 

Parishes  in  Dumfries. 
Kirk-connel,  Kirk-mahoe,  Kirk-Michael,  Kirk-Patrick,  Fleming 
Wester-kirk. 

Parishes  in  Kirkcudbright, 
Kells,  Kel-ton,  Kirk-bean,  Kirk-cudbright,  Kirk-gunzeon,  Kirk- 
mabzeck,  Kirk-Patrick-Durham,  Kirk-Patrick-Irongray. 

Parishes  in  Wigtown. 
Kirk-colm,  Kirk-cowan,  Kirk-inner,  Kirk-maiden. 

Parishes  in  Ross  and  Cromarty. 
Kil-leaman,  Kil-muir-Easter,  Kil-team. 

Parishes  in  Inverness, 
Kil-malie,    Kil-moniyaig,     Kil-morack,     Kil-tarlity,    Kill-muir 
Kirk-hilL 


SAINTLY  CELLS.  11 

Parishes  in  Aberdeen, 
iric-michael,  Eil-dniinmy. 

Parishes  in  Perth. 
Kil-lin,  Kil-madock,  Kil-spindie^  Eil-MichaeL 

Parishes  in  Fife. 
Kil-many,  Eilrennj,  Kirk-caldj,  Eil-conquhar. 

Parishes  in  Stirling. 
KU-leani,  Kilsyth,  Fal-kirk. 

Parishes  in  Dumbarton. 
Kirk-intillocli,  Kil-maronock,  Kil-patrick. 

1  do  not  know  whether  the  prefix  kin  is  a  corraption  of  kit,  as 
L-loss  (Ahbey  in  Morayshire),  Kin-ioss,  Kin-loch-spelvie,  Ein> 
loch-rannoch,  Ein-loch-lnichart,  Ein-cardine,  Ean-fanns,  Kin- 
daven,  Ein-naird,  Ein-nell,  Ein-tore,  Ein-nethmont,  Ein-gossie, 
Kin-tail,  Ein-garth,  &c.,  &c. 

I  also  find  Eil-chnm,  Eil-menny,  EJl-benrie,  Eil-bucho,  Eil- 
cr^ggan,  Eil-finan,  Eillundine  on  the  Moryen  coast,  and  Eilin- 
tointaik  (which  last  was  the  cell  of  St  Winifred) ;  Eillouian  on 
Isle  Colonsay,  was  the  cell  of  St.  Oran*  Eil-michael  Lussa  is  near 
to  Eiels  and  Eilmory,  in  Enapdale.  Cantyre  has  a  special  cluster 
of  saintly  cells — Eil-Eerran,  Eil-Michael,  Eil-Chouslau  (pronounced 
Kooslan),  Eol-Coivin,  ELil-Eevan,  Eil  Choman,  Eil  Colmkeil,  Eil- 
Baven,  KillDavie,  Eil-Eolan,  EiU-Blaan,  Eil-Ewen,  Eil-lean, 
Eil-kenzie. 

It  is  probable  that  some  of  the  saintly  names  here  quoted  may  be 
those  of  St.  Columba's  predecessors,  for  there  seems  every  reason  to 
believe  that  the  honour  of  having  first  introduced  Christianity  to 
this  district  has  been  erroneously  attributed  to  him,  St.  Eieran, 
whose  church  and  cave  we  saw  near  Campbeltown,  having,  it  is 
said,  come  over  from  Ireland  with  a  colony  of  Christian  Dalriads, 
who  settled  in  Argyleshire,  some  fifty  years  before  Columba,  the 
fiery  Abbot  of  Durrow,  had  quarrelled  with,  and  been  banished 
from  Ireland  by,  the  Ardriagh,  or  President. 

It  seems  that  when  attending  a  great  meeting  of  the  lords 


12  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

temporal  and  spiritual  of  the  Green  Isle,  Columba  was  rash  enough 
to  take  with  him  a  young  son  of  Aodh,  King  of  Connaught,  who 
was  at  enmity  with  the  Ardiiagh.  Even  the  sanctity  of  the  Abbot 
proved  no  protection  for  the  young  man,  who  was  treacherously 
slain.  Then  followed  war,  in  which  Columba  sided  with  the 
aggrieved  father,  and  eventually  received  that  command  to  quit 
Ireland,  which  brought  his  fiery  energies  to  the  aid  of  the  little 
Christian  band  of  Dalriads  in  Cantyre ;  whence  he  moved  onward 
to  that  Isle  where,  in  after  years,  kings  and  rulers  craved  permis- 
sion to  lay  their  dust  near  that  of  one  so  holy. 

St.  Kieran  is  not  the  only  pioneer  of  the  faith  whom  we  are  apt 
to  rob  of  honour  due,  while  heaping  veneration  on  St.  Columba. 
How  constantly  we  hear  the  latter  spoken  of,  as  though  he  first 
had  brought  to  our  Western  Isles  that  light  of  Christianity,  which 
thence  radiated  to  the  farthest  comers  of  the  mainland !  So  far 
from  this  being  the  case,  we  know  that  for  a  century  before  the 
birth  of  Columba,  a  series  of  duly  ordained  bishops  had  ruled  over 
Scottish  dioceses  in  various  parts  of  the  land  ;  these  being,  for  the 
most  part,  native  Christians,  who,  of  their  own  accord,  had  gone  to 
Bome  to  study.  Their  existence  as  Christians  gives  some  colour  to 
the  belief  that,  so  early  as  the  third  century,  Christ's  Name  was 
known  in  this  land. 

The  first  bishop  of  whom  we  hear  was  that  St.  Ninian  who,  in 
the  end  of  the  fourth  century,  returned  from  Eome  to  his  native 
county  of  Galloway,  where,  we  are  told,  *'  he  ordained  presbyters, 
consecrated  bishops,  and  organized  parishes.''  At  Whitehom  may 
still  be  seen  his  Caiidida  Casa,  the  first  Christian  church  built 
of  stone  in  Britain*  Here  he  was  buried,  about  the  year  a.  d. 
430. 

In  the  following  year  St.  Palladius  was  sent  to  this  country  as 
"  Primus  Episcopus  to  the  Scots  believing  in  Christ,"  and  about 
the  same  period  St.  Patrick  appears  on  the  scene.  He  was  bom 
about  the  year  a.d.  373,  in  Dumbarton,  the  place  of  his  birth  being 
named  in  his  honour,  Kilpatrick.  Having  been  captured  by  pirates 
and  carried  over  to  Ireland,  he  was  filled  with  an  exceeding  long- 
ing to  Christianize  the  Hibernians.      Histoty  records  how  he 


EARLIEST  PREACHEBS  OF  THE  CB06S.  13 

escaped  horn  slayeryy  and  oontriTed  to  reach  the  shores  of  Gaol, 
where  he  stodied  the  Scriptoies  for  thirty-fiye  years  before  he  was 
ordained  priest  Nor  was  it  tiU  he  was  about  sixty  years  of  age 
that  he  was  sent  back  as  Bishop,  to  commence  his  mission  in  the 
Emerald  Isle.  The  patient  student  proved  a  long-lived  teacher,  and 
18  said  to  have  died  at  his  poet  in  his  120th  year. 

Early  in  the  sixth  century,  we  hear  how  St  Kentigem  (better 
known  to  ns  as  St  Mnngo,  the  patron  saint  of  the  beantifal  old 
cathedral  at  Glasgow),  fixed  his  see  at  the  place  where  that  city 
now  stands.  To  him  the  credit  seems  dne  of  first  Christianizing 
part  of  Wales.  He  owed  his  early  training  to  St  Ser^  the  Apostle 
of  the  Orkneys ;  so  those  remote  Isles  must  have  had  their  first  rays 
of  light,  long  before  the  disciples  of  lona  went  thither  "  as  doves 
from  the  nest  of  Colomba."  The  fame  of  that  most  energetic 
worker  certainly  has  no  need  to  borrow  lustre  by  defnnding  his 
predecessors  of  their  rightfol  share;  doubtless,  when  he  landed 
on  this  wild  shore  of  Cantyie,  lus  heart  was  gladdened  by  the 
knowledge  that  the  light  he  strove  to  diffuse  was  already  glimmer- 
ing in  diveis  comers  of  the  land. 

In  defiance  of  the  commonly  received  account  of  his  having  first 
landed  on  Isle  Oronsay,  near  Golonsay,  and  having  thence  departed 
because  he  could  still  see  Ireland,  which  he  had  vowed  never  to 
behold  again, — ^the  tradition  in  Cantyre  is,  that  he  first  landed  at  the 
southernmost  point  of  the  Moyle ;  and  that,  although  in  full  view 
of  the  Irish  coast,  he  here  built  his  little  church,  where  he  preached 
for  some  time  before  he  went  to  lona,  leaving  lus  saintly  mark  on 
many  a  nook.  At  the  southern  extremity  of  the  Moyle  or  "  Mull " 
the  men  of  Cantyre  still  point  out  the  ''  Bay  of  the  Boat,^  as  the 
spot  where  his  frail  currach,  of  wicker-work  covered  with  hides, 
first  touched  the  shore,  whence  he  was  to  make  his  way  to  the 
court  of  Connal  MacCongail,  King  of  the  Northern  Scots,  to  whom 
he  was  nearly  related,  being  himself  of  the  blood-royaL  Connal 
and  his  people,  being  already  Christians,  gave  him  warm  welcome, 
and  sent  him  under  safe  escort  to  Brude,  the  King  of  the  Picts. 
He  too  declared  himself  a  Christian ;  and  his  chiefs  and  people 
were  not  slow  to  follow  his  example.     Soon  even  Broichan,  the 


14  IK  THE  HEBRIDES. 

Arch-Druid,  was  converted,  having  been  cured  by  St  Columba  of 
a  dangerous  and  sudden  illness. 

To  those  who  accept  this  form  of  the  tradition,  perhaps  the  most 
interesting  ecclesiastical  site  of  Cantyre  is  the  aforesaid  little  chapel, 
known  as  Kil-Colm-Keil,  the  Cell  of  St.  Columba,  at  Keil,  situated 
at  the  extreme  end  of  the  Mull  of  Cantyre, — just  such  an  one  as 
that  where  King  Arthur  was  laid,  when  sorely  wounded  in  that 
battle  among  the  mountains  beside  the  winter  sea — 

''  A  ruined  shrine,  beside  the  place  of  tombs. 
Where  lay  the  mighty  bones  of  ancient  men, 
Old  knights.    And  over  them  the  sea  wind  sang 
Shrill,  chill— with  flakes  of  foam." 

It  is  a  tiny  roofless  ruin — its  grey  walls  veiled  by  luxuriant  ferns 
which  cling  to  every  crevice,  and  form  a  soft,  green  coping.  It  lies 
so  close  to  the  sea,  that  the  salt  foam  dashes  over  the  old  tombs, 
and  the  tough  green  bent  creeps  up  amongst  the  stones,  while  bright 
sea-pinks  gleam  through  the  mossy  grass.  A  steep  crag  of  reddish 
rock  rises  directly  above  it ;  and,  just  beyond,  the  bluff  headland  of 
the  Moyle  itself  rises  abruptly  from  the  sea,  which  here  scarcely  ever 
knows  calm,  but  seems  to  revel  in  its  joyous  liberty. 

There  is  not  a  sailor  or  a  fisher  on  all  this  coast,  or  the  opposite 
shores  of  Ireland  (Antrim  being  but  twelve  miles  distant),  who  does 
not  dread  the  mighty  green  waves  that  are  for  ever  raging  in  their 
ceaseless  battle  with  the  stem  old  Moyle.  In  quick  succession  the 
booming  breakers  burst  on  the  unfeeling  rocks,  which  have  with- 
stood them  for  such  countless  ages,  and  now  fling  them  back  once 
more.  With  swift  rush,  the  baflBed  waters  fall  back  on  the  advanc- 
ing wave,  and  thus  reinforced,  renew  the  ceaseless,  hopeless  attack, 
— then,  **  white  with  rage,"  dash  themselves  to  atoms,  and  fall  in 
dazzling  spray  and  foam  over  the  cliff. 

If  you  count  the  waves,  you  will  see  that  about  every  sixth  is 
larger  than  the  others,  a  chieftain  in  fact ;  and  if,  as  it  curls  proudly 
over,  you  can  catch  a  gleam  of  light  through  the  transparent  water, 
you  will  see  its  wonderful  clear  green,  at  the  very  moment  that  the 
land  breeze  carries  back  its  crest  in  tossing  spray,  like  the  mane  of 
some  white  sea-horse.     Most  beautiful  of  all,  is  the  moment  when 


'god's  acre'  akd  god's  ocean.  15 

two  wayes,  whose  courses  differ  slightly,  come  to  a  yiolent  collision, 
and  dash  their  white  spray  heavenward, — an  encounter  which  you 
will  here  see  to  perfection,  as  two  strong  currents  meet  at  this  point. 
Perhaps  if  the  sea  is  not  very  angry  indeed,  there  will  come  a  lull — 
an  amnesty, — and  the  graves  that  were  drenched  with  the  salt  sea 
^lay,  will  dry  in  the  sunlight ;  and  the  shepherds  can  put  oflf  their 
boat^  and  row  to  the  grassy  islands  to  see  how  it  fares  with  their  sheep. 

It  was  on  one  of  these  unwonted  days  of  rest,  that  I  found  my  way 
to  KilcolmkeiL  Let  each  who  loves  the  peace  of  nature,  picture 
the  scene  for  himseli  The  heetling  crag, — God's-acre  hathed  in 
light, — earth  and  sky,  gleaming  with  that  clear  shining  that  cometh 
after  rain.  And  the  hush  and  silence  of  the  calm  wide  ocean,  noise- 
lessly stealing  on  and  on,  till  the  great  hrown  rocks,  with  their 
wealth  of  golden  seaweeds,  lie  hidden,  like  purple  shadows,  heneath 
the  cool  and  quiet  blue,  and  only  a  tiny  edge  of  white  rippling 
foam,  marks  the  lip  of  the  lazy  wave  as  it  glides  to  and  fro,  or 
brims  over  the  ribbed  sand,  glancing  and  gleaming  in  the  bright 
sunlight.  Only  here  and  there,  the  still  surface  of  the  waters  is 
broken  by  a  broad  leaf  of  brown  sea-ware,  waving  idly  from  the 
forest  below,  with  quivering  motion,  like  some  curious  wriggling 
sea-enake ;  or  a  floating  tangle,  like  long  human  hair,  washed  to  and 
fio,  suggests  some  fancy  of  the  sea  giving  up  her  dead,  to  this 
green  resting-place.  Kow  and  then,  there  is  the  quick  flash  of 
some  white-winged  gull,  as  it  darts  upon  its  prey,  and  then  again 
floating  upward,  hangs  idly  poised  in  the  sunny  air. 

Altogether  it  is  a  scene  of  most  blessed  peace,  such  as  sinks  into 
the  heart  with  strange  sweet  power,  soothing  and  lulling  the  turmoil 
of  its  cares.  For  there  ia  no  more  dear  companionship  than  that 
of  the  sea,  which  in  its  ever-changing  moods,  seems  almost  like 
some  human  thing,  that  one  day  claims  our  sympathies  with  its 
own  wild  joys  or  sorrows,  ready  in  its  turn  to  weep  or  laugh  with 
ours ;  to-day  so  calm  and  peaceful,  laughing  in  the  sunlight ;  to- 
morrow roused  to  mad  excitement,  lashing  itself  into  wild  rage ; 
then,  when  its  wrath  is  spent,  subsiding  as  though  repentant,  lying 
still  and  silent  beneath  the  cold  mists,  dreary  and  desolate  and  sad, 
— *like  a  sorrowful  spirit^  when  all  life's  energies  are  subdued.  ^ 


16  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

They  only,  who  have  been  cradled  and  nartnred  within  sonnd  of 
that  ceaseless  song  of  the  wild  waters,  can  fally  realize  their  subtle 
charm,  or  tell  the  unatterable  yearning  for  their  music, — ^the  crav- 
ing for  their  breadth,  for  their  reflections  of  the  great  clouds, — ^for 
their  incessant  movement,  which  oftentimes  comes  over  the  spirit^ 
when  the  body  is  tied  to  some  monotonous  inland  region;  the 
unspeakable  longing  for  sight  and  sound  of  the  great  green  waves, 
the  tossing  spray  and  screaming  sea-birds,  and  the  wild  breeze  that 
rushes  past,  laden  with  the  salt  sea-biine.  None  else  can  under- 
stand the  intensity  of  that  passionate  love  which  the  sea  and  its 
shores  can  inspire — the  thousand  memories  linked  with  those  wide 
white  sands — those  slippery  rocks — that  brown,  wet  tangle,  each 
leaf  of  which  seems  to  have  some  hidden  power  whereby  to  twine 
itself  round  the  innermost  depths  of  the  souL  None  else  can 
sympathize  with  the  bitter  disappointment  of  awakening  from  some 
blissful  vision  of  shell-gathering,  or  idling  by  those  great  waters,  to 
find  that  in  truth  it  was  but  a  dream. 

To  such  I  say,  if  you  would  see  Old  Ocean  in  its  glory,  come  to 
Cantyre ;  but  those  who  desire  true  mountain  scenery  had  better 
stay  away,  for  when  once  you  leave  the  seaboard  and  turn  inland, 
you  will  find  that  you  have  left  all  beauty  behind  you ;  the  great 
swelling  green  hills  do  indeed  rise  to  a  height  of  2000  feet ;  but 
the  very  name  Cnoc  Maigh,  or  the  Hill  of  the  Plain^  suggests  mere 
shapeless  high  ground.  Much  of  this  is  arable,  but  at  the  time  of 
our  visit,  a  sore  pest  was  troubling  the  land,  owing  to  the  lack  of 
&06t  in  the  previous  whiter.  This  was  a  gluttonous  grub,  which 
had  appeared  in  countless  myriads,  and  had  eaten  bare  all  the  fair 
green  crops,  leaving  only  fields  of  parched  red  earth.  Some  of  the 
farmers  were  brave  enough  to  hazard  a  second  sowing,  but  with 
small  hope  of  better  success. 

But  the  glory  of  Cantyre  lies  in  her  dairy-farms ;  the  rich  fine 
soil  yielding  abundant  pasture,  and  supporting  from  twenty  to 
thirty  cows  on  each  farm.  It  is  a  land  flowing  with  milk  and 
money,  with  comfortable,  well-to-do  inhabitants,  who  thankfully 
told  us  that  the  cattle  plague  had  as  yet  never  found  its  way  to 
their  shores.      But  though  the  fanner  will  offer  you  wine   and 


L 


CO-OPERATIVE  DAIRY-FARMS.  17 

spirits  in  abundance,  you  must  not  test  his  hospitality  so  cruelly  a^ 
to  expect  such  a  bowl  of  creamy  milk  as  any  old  **  Caillach"  in  h 
black  bothy  would  be  proud  to  offer  you,  should  slie  own  but  one 
gentle  "  Crummie."  At  these  great  dairies,  the  farmer  prides  him- 
self on  his  unbroken  pans  of  rich  milk,  therein  estimating  prospect- 
ive pounds  of  butter  and  cheese  for  a  sure  market. 

Looking  on  these  prosperous  dairy-farms,  the  idea  very  forcibly 
suggested  itself,  that  such  farms,  worked  on  a  co-op3rative  system, 
may  yet  bring  gold  and  comfort  to  many  a  district,  where,  although 
the  soil  is  unfit  for  cultivation,  it  assuredly  affords  rich  natural 
pastures,  which  could  hardly  be  more  usefully  employed,  both  for 
the  farmer  and  the  public. 

To  the  antiquarian,  Cantyre  offers  some  special  attractions.  I 
am  told  that  no  part  of  Scotland  is  richer  in  relics  of  pre-Christian 
times ;  cairns  and  barrrows,  monumental  pillars  erected  above  stone 
coffins,  and  rude  urns  containing  the  ashes  of  bodies  that  had  been 
burnt,  haWng  been  found  in  many  of  its  green  downs. 

There  are  countless  old  legends  attached  to  thepe  green  hills,  and 
to  the  cliffs  and  caves  along  the  shore ;  talcs  of  the  warrior  and 
mighty  hunter,  Fingal,  and  his  faithful  hound  Bran;  wonderful 
lioles  in  the  rock,  that  have  served  for  his  cooking  pots,  wherein  to 
boil  rude  kettles  formed  of  the  skins  of  the  deer,  and  filled  with 
flesh,  such  as  he  loved  to  eat  half  raw,  and  caves  that  have  been 
honoured  by  his  presence ;  but  these  tales  have  been  so  carefully 
collected  by  Campbell  of  Islay,  that  all  lovers  of  such  lore  need 
only  refer  to  his  *  Tales  of  the  West  Highlands '  for  an  inexhaustible 
store  of  wild  Gaelic  legends. 

Though  by  no  means  one  of  the  most  ancient  ruins,  the  fine 

old  Castle  of  Saddell,  with  its  mined  monastery  and  picturesque 

kirkyard,  are  among  the  most  remarkable   ecclesiastical  remains 

on  Cantyre.      Here  quaintly-sculptured  tombs  of  ecclesiastics  and 

warriors  lie  beneath  the  shadow  of  some  fine  old  trees  close  to  the 

shore.     Two  of  these  represent  knights  clad  in  armour,  and  round 

them  there  are  inscriptions  in  Saxon  character,  setting  forth  that 

these  were  Macdonalds  of  Saddell.     Several  fine  old  Crosses  have 

fallen,  or  been  overthrown,  and  their  broken  fragments  lie  half- 

c 


18  IN  THS  HEBRIDES. 

hidden  by  the  tangled  brambles.  little  of  the  monastery  now 
remains,  as  it  unhappily  proved  a  useful  quarry  for  ruthless  hands, 
and  the  modern  dwelling-house  has  been  in  a  great  measure  built  at 
the  expense  of  the  church,  all  the  hewn  stones  haying  been  removed, 
and  the  offices  paved  with  gravestones — a  species  of  sacrilege  which, 
until  the  present  generation,  was  terribly  common  throughout 
Britain;  and  indeed  it  needs  all  the  efforts  of  antiquarians  to 
check  it  even  now. 

I  well  remember  with  what  difficulty  my  father  stopped  similar 
devastation  at  Kinloss  Abbey  in  Morayshire,  where  its  stones  were 
rapidly  being  carried  off  by  neighbouring  farmers,  to  build  bams 
and  dykes,  bridges  and  gate-posts.  One  fine  old  stone  coffin  had 
been  converted  into  a  pig's  trough !  There  have  even  been  cases 
where  a  neighbouring  farmer  has  spared  himself  the  trouble  of 
stealing  the  stones,  and  therewith  building  byres,  by  the  simple 
expedient  of  making  use  of  the  grey  ruins  of  the  old  church  itself, 
as  a  convenient  substitute  for  cattle-sheds,  sheep-pens,  or  even  pig- 
styes!  These  neglected  churchyards  were  also  treated  as  monu- 
mental storehouses,  whence  beautifully-sculptured  slabs  might  be 
selected  to  mark  fresh  graves,  the  modern  name  being  roughly 
chiselled  over  the  weather-worn  escutcheon  of  some  brave  knight 
of  old ;  or  perhaps  the  robber  went  so  far  as  to  smoothe  the  slab, 
as  in  the  case  of  that  beautiful  stone  at  Hilton  of  GadboU,  where 
the  elaborate  tracery  has  been  completely  obliterated  from  one  side, 
and  replaced  by  an  inscription  to  the  memory  of  ''Alexander 
Duff,  Esq.  and  His  Thrie  Wives  "  ! 

The  Monastery  of  Saddell  is  one  of  considerable  interest  It 
was  founded  in  the  twelfth  century  by  one  of  the  Lords  of  the 
Isles — ^whether  by  the  great  Somerled  or  by  his  son  Ronald  seems 
uncertain,  but  it  very  soon  acquired  a  reputation  for  sanctity,  and 
great  men  of  old  craved  to  be  buried  there.  Of  Somerled,  and  his 
wars  with  Godred,  King  of  Man,  both  old  Sagas  and  Gaelic  legends 
tell  many  tales.  There  were  terrible  sea-fights,  [in  one  of  which 
the  Manx  fleet  of  galleys  was  so  sorely  beaten,  that  Godred  was 
compelled  to  yield  all  the  Sudereys,  or  Southern  Isles,  including 
'*  Yla  and  Kintyre,"  retaining  only  the  island  of  Man  itself.     The 


CASTLB  OF  SADDELL.  19 

wife  of  Somerled  was  a  daughter  of  Olaf  the  Swarthy,  King  of  Man 
and  the  lalea. 

Various  accounts  are  given  of  the  manner  of  his  death,  but 
whether  in  a  sea-fight  with  pirates,  or  by  assassination  in  his  own 
tent,  seems  uncertain.  One  version  is  that  he  sailed  with  160 
galleys  to  besi^  Benfrew,  and  fell  in  action  with  the  Scottish 
army.  In  any  case  his  body  seems  to  have  been  brought  to  Saddell 
for  burial,  and  laid  where  so  many  turbulent  warriors  now  sleep  in 
stillneas,  and  the  only  unrest  is  that  of  the  restless  ocean. 

In  the  castle  is  shown  an  old  dungeon  where  Macdonald  starved 
a  luckless  Irishman  who  had  the  misfortune  to  own  too  beautiful  a 
wife.  At  first  he  only  confined  him  in  a  granaiy ;  and  the  prisoner 
found  means  to  get  at  the  grain,  and  so  was  kept  alive.  Then  he 
changed  his  prison ;  but  through  the  barred  window  a  kindly  hen 
came  daily,  and  gave  him  her  egg.  So  the  flickering  flame  of  life 
still  burned.  Once  more  he  was  removed,  and  cast  into  this  deep 
noisome  cell,  where  nor  bird  nor  beast  could  bring  him  supplies — 
and  here  at  length  he  died,  having  gnawed  his  own  flesh  in  the 
agony  of  his  hunger.  Then  Macdonald  gave  him  burial ;  and  the 
beautiful  wife,  looking  down  from  the  high  tower,  espied  the 
funeral,  and  asked  whose  it  was ;  when  she  knew  that  it  was  her 
own  liege  lord,  she  cried  in  bitter  anguish  that  she  would  be  with 
him  anon,  and  with  one  wild  spring,  she  dashed  herself  from  the 
battlements,  and  was  buried  by  his  side. 

The  ruins  of  another  old  prison  still  remain  in  the  wood  dose 
by,  and  many  tales  of  the  treachery  and  vengeance  of  the  lords  of 
SaddeU  are  told  in  connection  with  these  grey  waUs. 

This  part  of  Cantyre  also  has  one  or  two  traditions  of  Bobert  the 
Brace ;  and  the  little  Isle  of  Bachrin,  off  the  Irish  coast  (distinctly 
visible  from  the  Mull),  was  to  him  a  haven  of  refuge  in  times  of 
danger. 

In  the  old  Fort  of  Dunaverty  he  also  found  warm  welcome.     A 

few  scattered  stones,  on  a  rocky  promontory,  are  all  that  now  mark 

this  old  Castle  of  Dunaverty,  ''the  Fort  of  Blood,"  once  a  mighty 

atronghold  of  the  Danes,  whose  fleet  were  wont  to  anchor  near  the 

opposite   Isle  of  Sanda,  still  known  to  the  Highlanders  as  the 

c  2 


20  IN   THE  HEBRIDES. 

gathering-place  of  the  Danes,  by  whom  it  was  called  Avoyn,  *  the 
Island  of  Harbours.'  Upon  it  are  the  ruins  of  St.  Annian's  Chapel, 
once  a  place  of  refuge,  where  all  outlaws  might  find  sanctuary. 

On  the  ruins  of  the  Danish  Fort  a  new  castle  was  built  by  the 
Macdonalds,  who  held  their  own  in  Cantyre  till  the  days  of  Mont- 
rose, whose  cause  they  espoused  even  unto  death.  But  when  the 
star  of  the  Covenanters  was  in  the  ascendant,  and  the  Royalists 
were  driven  even  to  this  Land's  End,  Sir  Allister  Macdonald  sailed 
for  Ireland,  there  to  raise  new  forces.  He  left  his  castle  in  the 
hands  of  his  broth»^r,  with  a  garrison  of  three  hundred  men. 

Very  soon  General  Leslie,  with  three  thousand  of  Argyle'a  men, 
advanced  to  besiege  the  old  fort.  Bravely  it  was  defended,  but 
after  awhile,  I^ie  discovered  that  the  only  well  for  the  supply  of 
the  garrison  lay  outside  the  walls,  and  that  the  water  was  brought 
in  artificially.  Of  course  this  was  at  rmce  cut  off,  and  not  one  dn)p 
was  to  be  had ,  to  quench  their  raging  thirst.  It  was  midsummer,  and 
even  the  kindly  rains  from  heaven  forgot  U)  fall.  Vainly  were  all  cye-« 
strained  to  watch  for  Sir  AUister's  return,  across  the  sea,  whose  cool 
green  waves  dashed  their  salt  sea  foam  so  mockingly  in  the  faces  of 
these  dying  men,  at  their  last  extremity.  Sir  Allister  had  been  slain 
in  battle ;  so  they  might  watch  till  they  wei-e  weary,  but  all  in  vain. 

At  length  they  were  forced  to  capitulate,  and  for  five  days  were 
kept  prisoners  on  their  rock  together  with  a  hundred  more  who  hud 
been  captured  in  a  cave,  or  rather,  smoked  out  of  it,  as  the  manner 
was.  Leslie  seems  to  have  inclined  to  mercy  towards  the  captives, 
but  he  was  hounded  on  by  a  Puritan  preacher,  Nave  by  name,  and 
knave  by  nature,  who  insisted  on  the  slaughter  "  of  these  Amalek- 
ites."  At  length  his  counsel  prevailed,  and  all  the  helpless  cap- 
tives were  either  put  to  the  sword,  or  dashed  from  the  precipice  into 
the  sea,  where  they  lighted  on  hard,  cruel,  jagged  rocks.  And  so 
they  perished  (all  save  one  man,  and  one  infant),  and  from  time  to 
time,  bleached  bones  and  skulls  are  still  washed  up  from  the  clefts 
of  the  rocks ;  and  the  fishers  tell  how,  when  the  wind  drifts  the 
sand  from  the  bank  close  by,  heaps  of  human  bones  are  sometimes 
seen,  which  the  next  kindly  wind  covers  up  again  with  a  fresh 
layer  of  soft  yellow  sand. 


THE  BROODING  FEVER-CLOUD.  21 

The  escape  of  the  little  infant  was  the  only  gleam  of  light  in  that 
day's  devilish  work.  Its  nuise  caught  it  up  naked  in  her  arras  and 
fled  along  the  shore.  She  was  stopped  by  a  Campbell,  and  vowed 
the  child  was  hers :  ''  It  has  the  eye  of  the  Macdonald  "  was  the 
answer.  Nevertheless,  the  heart  of  Craignish  was  soft,  and,  divid- 
ing bis  plaid,  he  gave  her  half  for  the  naked  baby,  and  suffered  her 
to  escape.  During  those  five  days  of  waiting  on  the  rock,  another 
Macdonald  drew  near,  with  a  small  body  of  men,  to  relieve  the 
garrison.  As  soon  as  the  piper  perceived  them,  he  struck  up  a  note 
of  warning  to  bid  them  turn  back,  llius  they  were  saved  from 
the  cruel  fate  that  awaited  their  brethren;  but  the  piper  paid 
dearly  for  his  tune,  the  enraged  Campbells  cutting  off  his  fingers  to 
prevent  his  ]»laying  any  more  such  strains. 

Thus  it  was,  that  Cantyre  passed  from  the  hands  of  the 
Macdonalds  to  tho.<«e  of  the  gleed  (squinting)  Marquis  of  Argrle  and 
his  clansmen.  It  seemed  as  though  Heaven's  righteous  retribution 
soaght  them  out,  when,  ere  many  years  bad  past,  a  terrible  plague 
came  and  utterly  depopulated  the  whole  of  Cantyre.  It  was  the 
same  year  that  the  Great  Plague  was  raging  in  London.  The  pesti- 
]**nce  swept  over  the  land  in  visible  form,  as  a  great  white  cloud 
laden  with  death — just  such  a  cloud  as,  in  later  days,  has  rested  on 
Mal^a,  and  other  cities,  in  times  of  cholera  (on  Dumfries,  for 
instance,  where  in  1843  the  cholera  raged  for  mouths,  nor  ever 
stayed  its  ravages  till  one-third  of  the  inhabitants  were  laid  in  great 
pits  in  the  overcrowded  churchyards.  And  during  all  the  time  that 
tlie  Angel  of  Death  thus  brooded  over  the  city,  a  pestilential  cloud 
hung  like  a  death-pall,  floating  in  mid-air,  above  the  circle  of  hills 
which  enclose  the  city  as  in  a  cup.  It  was  a  dull  heavy  film, 
through  which  neither  the  foul  air  could  escape  nor  could  fresh  air 
circulate,  but  all  was  dead  stagnation  ;  even  the  sunbeams  passing 
throagh  were  discoloured,  and  fell  with  lurid  glare  upon  the  scene 
of  horror  below).  The  fever-cloud  rested  long  on  Cantyre,  and  left 
its  traces  for  many  generations.  So  sorely  did  Argyle's  estates 
suffer,  that  moneys  were  voted  by  Parliament  for  his  relief,  while 

the  poorer  folk  received  such  help  as  the  churches  could  collect. 
A  sunnier  legend  of  Dunaverty  in  its  palmy  days,  tells  how  its 


22  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

chief  rescued  the  fair  daughter  of  the  King  of  Carrickfergos  from 
the  pillion  of  O'Connor,  the  King  of  Innisheon,  who  had  ran  away 
with  her  against  her  wilL  He  restored  her  to  her  father,  and  con- 
tinued Ms  honoured  guest  till,  in  his  turn,  he  claimed  the  maiden's 
hand,  and  was  cast  into  a  dungeon  to  rue  his  presumption.  Thence 
rescued  by  the  damsel,  he  escaped  to  Dunaverty ;  but  once  more 
returning  in  quest  of  his  love,  found  that  she  too  was  now  in  dur- 
ance vile,  for  haying  aided  his  flight  So,  like  the  hardy  Norse- 
man of  old,  he  showed  that  neither  bolt  nor  bar  could  part  him 
from  his  own  true  love,  and  carried  her  safely  across  the  sea  to  his 
own  old  castle.  The  wrathful  king  followed  in  his  galley,  with 
many  mighty  men  of  war,  vowing  swift  vengeanca  Happily 
counsels  of  peace  prevailed,  and  the  lady  obtained  pardon  for  her 
lord;  so  they  all  went  back  together  to  the  Emerald  Isle,  and 
lived  merrily  to  the  end  of  the  chapter,  and  their  children  became 
kingei,  from  whom  the  Earls  of  Antrim  claim  descent. 

About  two  miles  from  Campbelton  lies  the   old  kirkyard   of 
Kilcousland,  one  of  the  many  which,  to  me,  give  an  especial  charm 
to  these  green  shores ;  lying,  as  they  do,  almost  within  reach  of  the 
wild  spray,  which,  dashing  heavenward,  falls  in  lightest  showers 
over  the  rank  grass  and  golden  iris,  and  mossy  stones,  beneath 
which  sleep  so  many  forgotten  generations.     Kilcousland  has  no 
gravestones  of  especial  interest,  but  (half  hidden  by  large-leaved 
coltsfoot  and  dockans,  and  stately  tall  white  hemlocks)  are  many 
which  are  quaint  and  old,  and   though  the  majority  only  show 
crowns  and  shields  and  grotesque  death' s-heads-and-crossbones,  and 
fat-faced  cherubs  with  lumps  of  moss  for  their  eyes,  or  else  such 
growth  of  golden  lichen  as  Old  Mortality  would  have  loved  to 
scrape  away,  there  are  some  devices  which  tell  the  daily  work  of 
the  sleeper  forcibly  enough.     Thus,  a  ploughman  has  quite  a  grace- 
f  111  grouping  of  reins  and  harness ;  a  carpenter  keeps  his  hammer 
and  saw  and  sundry  other  tools ;  whUe  the  tailor  carries  his  shears 
and  his  goose  to  the  end  of  time. 

On  the  broken  shaft  of  an  old  cross,  a  carved  galley  tells  of  some 
forgotten  Island  chief,  while  a  neighbouring  stone  bears  a  knight's 
two-handed  sword,  surrounded  with  runic  knotting.    The  next 


ST.  couslan's  weddings.  23 

tomb  bears  only  a  heavy  da^^r  on  a  shield,  no  name  to  mark  who 
aleepe  beneath. 

I  sat  for  many  hours  in  this  calm  "  God's  acre/'  in  the  shade  of 
the  rained  church,  watching  the  ever-changing  colours  of  the  quiet 
sea,  lipping  up  to  the  foot  of  the  gteen  hill  on  which  I  rested ; 
constant  changes  from  blue  to  green,  and  purple  and  silvery  greys,  all 
blended  by  the  reflection  of  every  tint  of  sky  and  cloud,  according 
as  the  angle  of  the  broken*  wavelet  either  mirrors  these,  or  lets  us 
see  beneath  its  surface,  into  its  own  depths ;  giving  us  hints  of  the 
wonderful  world  helow  the  waters.  There  were  hroken  reflections, 
too,  from  the  hills  of  Arran,  and  from  Ailsa  Craig,  which  is  a  very 
line  rock-islet,  at  the  entrance  to  Campbelton  harbour.  In  form  it 
resembles  the  familiar  Bass  Bock,  rising  precipitously  from  the  sea 
to  a  height  of  1100  feet.  It  is  a  mass  of  grey  columnar  basalt, 
which  to  the  north-west  presents  a  very  grand  face  of  great  hasaltic 
oolomns.  On  the  opposite  side  are  the  ruins  of  an  ancient  square 
tower,  on  a  high  rock-terrace  overlooking  the  sea.  It  is  a  very 
green  isle,  and  afl^ords  pasture  to  many  goats.  A  multitude  of 
rabbits  and  innumerable  sea-birds  also  hold  the  Craig  in  possession. 

Kow  and  then  I  watched  a  white  sail  round  the  lighthouse,  and 

enter  the  quiet  haven.     I  thought  of  the  words  of  one  whose  dying 

prayer  was — 

**  Lay  me  beneath  the  grass, 
Where  it  dopes  to  the  south  and  the  sea ; 
Where  the  tiying  I  love  may  pass. 
And,  passing,  may  think  of  me  ** — 

and  I  thought  that  just  such  a  churchyard  as  this  was  the  resting- 
place  for  which  she  craved.  It  was  a  scene  of  great  peace,  and  I 
lingered  till  the  blue  sky  of  noon  had  changed  to  that  pale  primrose 
against  which  each  form  of  earth  cuts  with  such  intensity  of 
colour;  and  the  evening  breeze,  rustling  among  the  tall  flags, 
sounded  like  a  mysterious  whisper  from  the  sleepers  around  me. 
The  saint  to  whom  this  spot  was  dedicated,  was  a  certain  kindly  old 
8t  Conslan,  whose  sympathies  were  all  on  the  side  of  young 
couples  whose  true  love  was  thwarted  by  stem  parents  and 
goaidians.    To  make  matters  easy  for  them,  he  set  up  near  his  cell 


24  IN   THE   HEBRIDES. 

a  large  stone  with  a  hole  in  the  centre,  and  announced  that  run- 
away couples  who  succeeded  in  reaching  this  stone,  and  here  joining 
hands,  should  be  considered  indissolubly  united.  Here  we  have  a 
trace  of  the  earlier  paganism — a  survival  of  that  old  Norse  custom 
of  betrothal,  which  bade  lovers  join  hand$<  through  a  circular  hole 
in  a  sacrificial  stone.  This  was  called  the  promise  of  Odin,  and 
was  practised  in  the  Northern  Isles  long  after  they  had  embraced 
Christianity. 

The  custom  was  long  observed  in  Orkney,  where,  a  little  to  the 
cast  of  one  of  the  two  clusters  of  large  standing  stones  (the  stones 
of  Stennis)  there  was  one  stone  with  a  hole  right  through  it.  To 
this  stone  of  betrothal  came  all  the  Orkney  lovers,  to  plight  their  troth 
by  clasping  hands  through  the  perforated  stone.  This  ceremony 
was  considered  so  binding,  that  there  was  no  downright  necessity  for 
a  subsequent  marriage  with  Christian  rites.  Indeed  there  were 
certain  advantages  in  dispensing  with  such  a  ceremony,  as  those  who 
were  joined  together  with  the  sanction  of  the  Church  could  never 
more  be  parted,  whereas  those  who  had  dispensed  with  it,  and  had 
only  bound  themselves  by  the  promise  of  Odin,  might,  should  they 
grow  weary  one  of  another,  legally  annul  their  marriage,  by  merely 
entering  the  Church  of  Stennis,  and  there  parting. 

"  They  both  came  to  the  kirk  of  Steinhouse,"  says  Dr.  Henry  of 
Orkney,  "  and  after  entering  the  kirk  the  one  went  out  at  the 
south,  and  the  other  at  the  north  door,  by  which  act  they  were 
holden  to  be  legally  divorced,  and  free  to  make  another  choice." 

The  celebrated  perforated  stone  of  Stennis  is  known  to  have  been 
an  object  of  veneration  to  the  men  of  Orkney,  long  before  the 
Northmen  came,  and  called  it  after  Odin,  and  the  people  continued 
to  hold  it  in  reverence  till  the  beginning  of  this  century,  when  it 
was  destroyed. 

A  simple  and  more  poetic  form  of  betrothal  was  for  the  lad  and 
lass  to  stand  on  either  side  of  a  narrow  brook,  and  to  clasp  hands 
across  the  stream,  calling  on  the  moon  to  witness  their  pledge. 

Sometimes  the  young  couple  each  took  a  handful  of  meal,  and 
kneeling  down,  with  a  bowl  between  them,  emptied  their  hands 
therein,  and  mixed  the  meal ;  at  the  same  time  taking  an  oath  on 


ST.  coivin's  divorces.  25 

the  Bible  never  to  sever,  till  death  should  them  part.  A  case  was 
tried  in  Dalkeith  in  1872,  where  this  simple  marriage  ceremony  was 
proved  hj  Scotch  law  to  be  legally  binding. 

Bat  the  commonest  and  certainly  the  most  curious  custom  of 
betrothal,  was  that  of  thumb-licking,  when  lovers  licked  their 
thumbs  and  pressed  them  together,  vowing  constancy.  This  was 
held  binding  as  an  oath,  and  to  break  a  vow  so  made,  was  equivalent 
to  perjury.  This  custom  is  still  quite  common  in  Ross-shire,  on 
concluding  all  manner  of  bargains,  such  as  sales  of  cattle  or  grain. 
Hence  the  saying,  "  1*11  gie  ye  my  thumb  on  it,"  or.  "  I'll  lay  my 
thoomb  on  that,"  expressing  that  the  statement  last  made  is  satis- 
factory. There  are  men  still  in  the  prime  of  life,  who  remember 
when  the  custom  of  thumb-licking  was  the  recognized  conclusion  of 
business  transactions,  even  so  far  south  as  the  Clyde,  and  not 
unknown  in  Glasgow  itself. 

Whatever  may  have  been  the  origin  of  this  quaint  ceremony,  it 
is  carious  to  remember  that  the  ancient  Indian  custom  on  sealing  a 
bargain  or  conferring  a  gift  was  to  pour  water  into  the  hand  of  the 
recipient,  as  is  shown  on  many  sculptures.  Probably  the  thumb- 
licking  was  a  convenient  substitute  for  the  original  symbol. 

Another  saintly  Father,  who  was  reputed  to  take  considerable 
interest  in  the  matrimonial  affairs  of  his  people,  was  St.  Coivin, 
who  gets  the  credit  of  having  established  a  most  extraordinary  law 
of  divorce,  which  assuredly  savours  of  earlier  pagan  days.  He  is 
said  to  have  invited  all  unhappy  couples  to  meet  at  his  cell  on  a 
given  night,  when,  having  blindfolded  each  person,  he  started  them 
on  a  pell-mell  race  thrice  sunwise  round  the  church.  Suddenly  the 
saint  would  cry  ^  Cabhag ! "  t.  e.  seize  quickly  !  and  each  swain 
most  catch  what  lass  he  could,  and  be  true  to  her  for  one  whole 
year,  at  the  end  of  which,  if  still  dissatisfied,  he  might  return  to 
the  saintly  cell,  and  try  a  new  assortment  in  the  next  matrimonial 
game  at  blind-man's-buif ! 

The  spot  where  these  strange  games  at  blindfold  love  were  played, 
18  the  old  kirkyaid  of  Kilkevan,  on  the  high  ground  overlooking 
Macnahanish  Bay,  one  of  the  most  attractive,  though  loneliest, 
reaches  of  our  sea-coast     Here  the  finest  golden  sands  stretch  for 


26  IN  THE  HEBBIDX8. 

milee  along  the  shore,  where  the  gnat  green  waves  break  oeaseleBaly. 
To  me  St  Cotvin'e  cell  waa  a  epecially  attnctive  sketching-ground, 
with  its  distant  view  of  the  five  bine  peaks  of  Jura,  its  pleasant  snr- 
ronndings  of  grassy  downs,  fragrant  with  lilac  orchids  and  the  quiet 
iTj-covered  rains.  Ifany  of  ita  sculptured  gravestones  are  of  unusual 
beauty.  Some  of  these  hear  the  figures  of  knights,  with  sword  sa 
long  as  that  of  Rohett  the  Bruce,  and  devices  of  the  chase  or 


armorial  hearings  carved  all  round  them.  Others  have  no  fignis, 
only  one  long  sword ;  some  have  only  daggers.  There  is  no  mark 
to  tell  who  sleeps  beneath,  or  whence  came  the  stones,  though  the 
people  have  a  tradition  that  they  were  brought  &om  Iona,^which, 
indeed,  is  likely  enough  ;  not  as  the  spoils  of  mthleae  pillage,  hut 
as  the  handiwork  of  some  of  the  holy  brethren,  well  skilled  in 
cunning  stone-work,  who  doubtless  supplied  these  monuments  to 
such  of  theii  neighbouia  as  were  willing  to  pay  for  them.     Be  that 


CAMELLIAS  IN  THE  OPEN  AIR.  27 

MB  it  maj,  the  carveis  and  the  knights  have  been  alike  foigotten 
for  many  long  ages,  and  here  they  still  lie,  all  facing  the  east — 
waiting.  The  restless  agitation  of  the  mighty  waters  has  not 
tronbled  their  sleep ;  though,  to  the  idle  dreamer  who  lies  among 
the  golden  iris  watching  the  broad  lights  and  shadows  passing 
quickly  over  old  Ocean's  face,  it  seems  such  a  constant  emblem  of 
the  tossing  and  unrest  of  life,  that  he  cannot  well  put  away  the 
thousand  thoughts  thus  awakened,  and  as  the  murmurous  echoes 
rise  and  fall  with  the  breeze,  they  seem  to  whisper  the  words  of  an 
old  song : — 

"  Like  the  wild  ceaseless  motioii,  * 

Of  the  deep  heaving  wave, 
Is  our  heart's  restless  beating, 
From  our  birth  to  our  grave. 
Tos8*d  by  strong  stormy  passions 

Ou  the  swift  wind  we  flee, 
Till  life's  bark  reach  the  haven 
Where  is  no  more  sea..' 

No  spot  on  earth  could  well  be  more  peaceful  than  the  shores  of 
beautiful  Macnahanish  Bay,  and  the  green  woods  and  braes  of 
Loeset,  where  we  have  spent  so  many  pleasant  days.  The  fields 
close  to  the  house  are  white  with  narcissus,  the  uncultured  growth 
of  many  generations ;  while  genuine  wild  flowers — blue  and  green 
and  gold — ^riot  in  the  shelter  of  the  glen,  and  all  day  long  the 
mAvis  and  merle  pour  forth  their  jubilant  songs  in  the  quiet  wood. 

It  is  curious  to  note  how  the  absence  of  frost  favours  the  growth 
of  plants  too  delicate  for  our  eastern  coast.  Camellias  bloom  in  the 
open  air,  and  great  hedges  of  crimson  fuschia  live  securely  all  the 
winter,  on  the  lee  side  of  sturdy  fir  trees,  whose  upper  branches, 
however,  are  all  scorched  by  the  blighting  sea-winds. 

I  wonder  what  peculiarity  of  atmosphere  causes  the  wonderful 
splendour  of  the  sunsets  on  this  coast  You  know  how  much  we 
have  always  heard  of  the  amazing  glory  of  sunrise  and  sunset  in  the 
East,  more  especially  during  the  rains.  I  may  safely  say  that 
during  a  residence  of  several  years  in  various  parts  of  the  tropics,  I 
have  scarcely  once  neglected  to  do  homage  to  these  outgoings  of 
morning  and  evening,  but,  with  perhaps  two  exceptions,  I  have  seen 


28  IX   THE   HEBRIDES. 

iiothiug  that  could  bear  away  the  palm  of  beauty  from  our  own 
skies;  and  I  am  more  and  more  tempted  to  believe  that  these 
**  odious  comparisons"  are  due  only  to  the  different  hours  of  rising 
and  dining,  which  compel  travellers  to  use  their  eyes  in  a  way  they 
([uite  forget  to  do  when  at  home. 

Have  you  not  sometimes  wondered  at  the  dull  hearts,  and  blind 
eyes,  that  could  scarcely  glance  westward  for  one  moment,  though 
the  golden  gates  seemed  to  have  opened  behind  the  heavy  purple 
clouds,  just  flushed  with  rosy  ciimsou;  and  all  so  quickly  changing ; 
softening  and  mellowing  in  the  hazy  sunset  light,  till  earth,  and  sea, 
and  sky  alike  lay  steeped  in  loveliness  1  Blind  eyes  they  must  be, 
that  have  not  yet  been  opened  to  read  the  Divine  Book  of  Nature, 
written  day  by  day  by  the  finger  of  God  Himself;  the  God  of 
Infinite  variety,  Whoso  worship  men  are  so  apt  to  reduce  to  a  mere 
system  of  forms,  of  infinite  sameness.  Surely  the  mind  that  most 
dearly  loves  to  drink  in  the  beauty  of  the  visible  world,  must  be 
the  most  in  sympathy  with  that  of  the  Great  Artist  Who  delights  in 
creating  such  refinements  of  beauty,  **  rejoicing  in  His  work." 

One  advantage  over  the  sunsets  of  the  East  we  ccrtidnly  possess, 
in  the  long,  beautiful,  hours  of  twilight,  when  the  curlew  and  the 
plover  alone  are  on  the  wing  ;  and  that  still  later  hour  "  'twixt  the 
gloaming  and  the  mirk "  when  all  voices  of  nature  are  hushed, 
except  the  grand  music  of  the  sea,  murmuring  its  endless  harmonies 
to  the  wild  bent  bills. 

I  doubt  if  there  is  any  spot  in  all  the  British  Isles,  where  you 
may  study  Old  Ocean  in  all  its  varied  tempers  more  perfectly  than 
you  can  here,  in  beautiful  Macnahanish  Bay,  which  lies  outspread 
before  our  windows,  so  that  morning,  noon,  and  night  we  watch  its 
changing  moods.  From  earliest  times  this  spot  has  been  noted  for 
the  tremendous  size  and  roaring  of  the  waves,  which  on  the  slightest 
provocation  seem  to  lash  themselves  to  raging  fury,  and  many  a 
brave  sliip  has  perished  here,  deceived  by  the  lowness  of  the  land, 
and  so  lured  on  to  destruction. 

The  whole  force  of  the  broad  Atlantic  seems  to  sweep  into  the 
Bay,  as  the  great  wild  waves  rush  onward,  chafing  in  their  tumult- 
uous wiath,  albeit  with  such  *' method  in  their  madness;"  rising 


THE  KELP-BURNER.  29 

and  swelling  so  deliberately,  as  each  Diightj  green  billow  curls  and 
breaks,  in  a  crest  of  gleaming  foam  ;  and  the  seething  water  dashes 
noisily  over  the  shingle,  babbling  and  surging  among  the  masses  of 
rock  which  lie  heaped  in  such  grand  confusion  along  the  coast — or 
else  tossing  its  spray  in  wild  sport,  right  over  the  cliffs  and  caves, 
where  the  delicate  ferns  are  nestling,  to  the  green  bank  above, 
where  the  young  lambs  are  learning  to  crop  the  sweet  short  grass 
from  those  dangerous  ledges,  and  spring  back,  startled,  by  such 
chilling  practical  jokes. 

The  waves  are  not  idle  in  their  sport.  They  are  washing  up 
great  masses  of  brown  sea-ware,  not  carefully  gathered  with  a 
loving  hand,  but  torn  up  by  the  roots,  from  the  great  gardens  in 
the  ocean  depths.  And  the  poor  kelp-burners  are  watching 
anxiously  to  see  what  harvest  they  may  hope  to  reap.  Some 
have  only  their  creels,  rough  wicker  baskets,  which  they  carry 
on  their  own  shoulders,  but  here  and  there  is  a  little  cart,  drawn 
by  a  strong  pony  ;  a  willing  little  beast,  which  strains  every  nerve 
to  drag  its  burden  of  wet,  heavy  weed,  over  the  rough  shingle,  to 
some  spot  above  high-water  mark,  where  it  may  be  spread  over  the 
grass  or  sand,  and  left  for  several  days  to  dry ;  this  is  the  most 
anxious  time  in  the  harvest,  as  anxious  as  haymaking,  in  this 
uncertain  climate ;  for  one  heavy  shower  of  rain  will  wash  away  all 
the  precious  salts  and  iodine,  and  leave  the  beach  strewn  only  with 
useless  lumber. 

As  soon  as  it  is  safely  dried,  the  weed  is  heaped  into  little 
stacks,  till  the  last  moment,  when  the  furnace  is  ready  to  bum  it. 
It  is  not  "all  fish  that  comes  to  the  net"  of  the  kelp-burner. 
Those  broad  fronds  of  brown  wrack  which  strew  the  shore  are 
useless  to  him.  He  most  values  the  masses  of  brown  tangle 
covered  with  little  bladders,  and  when  the  tide  goes  out,  ho  will 
cut  all  that  he  can  find  growing  on  the  rocks,  and  add  it  to  his 
store ;  this  being  by  far  richer  in  salts  than  that  which  is  cast  up 
by  the  sea.^ 

1  The  sea- weeds  most  valued  for  this  purpose,  are  ChorcUtJUum,  Laminarui 
di^Uata,  Laminaria  hvlhosa,  Fucus  nodogus,  Fucus  terrattUj  F.  vesunUomu, 
Himanthalia  lorta.    These  yield  salts  in  various  proportions.    One  ton  of 


30  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

Let  OB  sit  down  awliile,  and  watch  him  bum  those  brown  heaps 
which  he  collected  last  week.  We  cannot  stand  on  the  open 
shore,  or  the  bent  hills,  for  the  wind  is  blowing  inland  with  such 
violence,  that  we  should  be  sent  right  across  the  Isthmus — but 
there  is  a  green  bank  at  the  foot  of  the  cliff,  facing  the  sea,  where 
hardly  a  breath  of  air  stirs  the  blue-bells  and  foxgloves ;  for  the 
wind  strikes  the  shore  in  front  of  it,  and  then  seems  to  be  thrown 
upward  at  a  sharp  angle  to  the  top  of  the  crag,  and  though  we 
seem  to  be  right  in  the  wind's  eye,  we  shall  really  be  in  perfect 
shelter.     This  is  a  wrinkle,  which  holds  good  for  all  rocky  coasts.^ 

Now  the  kelp-burners  have  made  their  kiln — it  is  a  long  deep 
grave  Uned  with  large  stones.  First  they  sprinkle  a  light  covering 
of  dry  weed  over  these  stones,  and  coax  it  till  it  bums,  then  slowly 
they  add  a  handful  at  a  time,  till  the  grave  is  filled,  and  heaped  up, 
with  a  semi-fluid  mass,  which  they  stir  incessantly  with  a  long  iron 
bar  ;  and  a  very  picturesque  group  they  are,  half  veiled  by  volumes 
of  white  opal  smoke  which  has  a  pungent  marine  smelL 

This  work  will  go  on  for  hours,  and  when  all  the  tangle  has  been 
burnt,  the  kiln  will  be  allowed  to  half-cool,  and  its  contents  cut 
into  solid  blocks  of  a  dark  blmsh-grey  material.     These  very  soon 

kelp  should  yield  an  avehige  of  about  eight  pounds  of  iodine,  and  certain 
quantities  of  chloride  of  sodium,  chloride  of  potassium,  carbonate  of  soda,  etc. 
When  subject  to  special  treatment,  and  distillation,  it  can  also  be  made  to 
yield  two  or  three  cwt.  of  sulphate  of  ammonia,  and  several  gallons  of  naphtha, 
of  parafin  oil,  and  of  volatile  oil.  It  is  said  that  the  sea-weed  of  the  Channel 
Isles  is  richer  in  iodine  than  that  of  any  other  place,  and  it  is  calculated  that 
the  Channel  Islanders  might  easily  manufacture  10,000  tons  annually.  In 
Brittany  and  Normandy  (where  it  is  called  Varek)  about  25,000  tons  per  annum 
are  produced. 

^  Mr.  Darwin  evidently  alludes  to  this  circumstance  in  his  Kotes  on  St 
Helena.  He  says  :  '*  I  was  standing  on  the  edge  of  a  plain,  terminated  by  a 
great  cliff  of  about  a  thousand  feet  in  depth,  when,  at  the  distance  of  a  few 
yards  to  windward,  I  saw  some  tern  strugsling  against  a  very  strong  breeze, 
whilst  where  I  stood  the  air  was  quite  calm.  Approaching  close  to  the  brink, 
where  the  current  seemed  to  be  deflected  upwards  from  the  face  of  the  cliff,  I 
stretched  out  my  arm,  and  immediately  felt  the  full  force  of  the  wind  ;  an 
invisible  barrier,  two  yards  in  width,  separated  perfectly  calm  air  from  a 
strong  blast.  ; 


FLUCTUATIONS  IK  THE  KELP-MARKET.  31 

become  as  hatd  and  heavy  as  iron,  and  are  then  ready  for  the 
market.  From  this  material  much  carbonate  of  soda  and  various 
salts  are  obtained.  But  its  most  valued  product  ia  iodine,  precious 
alike  to  the  physician  and  the  photographer.  Till  very  recently 
this  was  only  to  be  obtained  from  the  ash  of  dried  sea^weed,  con- 
sequently the  discovery  of  its  various  good  qualities  gave  a  renewed 
impetus  to  the  kelp  trade.  Kow,  however,  iodine  is  more  cheaply 
and  readily  obtained  from  crude  Chili  saltpetre,  so  the  demand  for 
kelp  has  again  decreased.  Moreover,  it  has  been  discovered  that 
much  of  the  iodine  which  was  altogether  wasted  in  the  process  of 
burning,  can  be  saved  and  utilized  by  a  process  of  distillation. 

Kelp  was  formerly  of  very  great  value  in  the  manufacture  of  soap, 
alam,  and  glass,  but  it  is  now  found  that  crude  carbonate  of  soda  of 
better  quality,  and  cheaper,  can  be  obtained  from  sea-salt.  More- 
over, the  great  extent  to  which  potass  is  now  imported  has  proved 
a  very  heavy  loss  to  the  kelp-burners,  whose  hard  work  conse- 
qaently  brings  a  comparatively  small  return.  And  years  ago,  the 
removal  of  the  duty  on  Spanish  barilla  was  a  matter  of  ruin  to 
many  of  the  Islanders,  chiefly  those  of  Skye,  where  the  weed  con- 
tained a  much  smaller  proportion  of  the  precious  salts,  than  on  other 
shores,  such  as  those  of  Orkney,  and  whero,  consequently,  this 
mannfacturo  has  been  entirely  given  up.  • 

Kelp-making  does  not  appear  to  have  been  one  of  the  industries 
of  the  Isles  till  about  the  middle  of  last  century,  when  it  became  a 
distinctive  feature,  and  so  lucrative  that  some  small  farms  paid 
their  whole  rent  from  the  produce  of  the  rocks.  Thus  it  came  to 
pass  that  the  shores  and  rocks  were  sometimes  let  separately  from 
the  farms ;  and  then  the  farmers  were  badly  off  indeed, — as  indeed 
they  are  still,  having  to  go  miles  to  collect  the  necessary  sea-weed 
wherewith  to  manure  their  fields,  sometimes  carrying  it  in  creels  on 
their  backs  for  several  miles,  or  fetching  it  in  boats  from  long 
distances  across  the  stormy  seas.  When  the  value  of  kelp  was  at 
its  height)  several  farms  in  the  Orkneys  actually  rose  in  rental  from 
40/.  to  300/.  per  annum. 

The  Orkney  kelp  is  used  in  the  manufacture  of  plate-glass, 
and  fetches  double  the  price  of  that  made  in  the  Hebrides,  which 


32  IN   THE  HEBRIDES. 

is  only  fit  for  soap.  Nevertheless  in  the  year  1818  no  less  than 
6000  tons  were  produced  in  the  Hebrides  alone,  and  sold  at  £20 
per  ton.  In  that  year  the  kelp  harvest  of  the  entire  coast  of 
Scotland  was  upwards  of  20,000  tons,  and  was  valued  at  half  a 
million  sterling.  Within  the  last  few  years,  the  price  of  kelp 
in  the  Hebrides  fell  to  about  4/.  per  ton.  In  former  times  62. 
was  the  average,  though  it  varied  from  21.  to  20/.  This  high  price 
was  of  short  duration,  and  only  continued  during  a  sudden  failure 
in  the  supply  of  Spanish  barilla.  When  you  consider  with  what 
infinite  labour  and  risk  this  crop  is  gathered,  and  that  every  ton  of 
kelp  represents  twenty-four  tons  of  sea- weed,  you  must  allow  that 
there  is  pretty  stiff  work  for  the  money,  and  that  these  kelp- 
burners  do  not  eat  the  bread  of  idleness.  The  price  obtained  for 
kelp  has  continued  gradually  to  decline,  and  latterly  its  manufac- 
ture has,  in  many  places,  been  altogether  abandoned,  though  the 
loss  of  this  source  of  revenue  is  a  serious  matter  to  the  people.  It 
seems  probable,  however,  that  science  may  come  to  their  rescue  by 
utilizing  the  sea-weeds — once  accounted  so  worthless,  but  now  known 
to  be  so  exceedingly  precious.  In  the  first  place  their  value  is  now 
so  fully  recognized,  as  forming  the  submarine  covert,  wherein  the 
baby  fishes  find  not  only  food  but  a  refuge  from  their  foes, — that  on 
some  f)arts  of  the  British  coast  (Devonshire)  the  Board  of  Trade 
has  prohibited  the  cutting  of  sea-ware. 

But  to  all  our  shores,  old  Ocean  brings  a  liberal  supply  of  drift- 
weed,  precious  to  the  farmer,  to  whose  land  they  supply  tlie  phos- 
phates and  salts  which  nourish  all  plants.  Cattle  too,  and  horses, 
and  sometimes  sheep,  find  their  winter  fodder  on  the  shore,  and  in 
times  of  scarcity  many  of  our  poor  fellow-subjects  eke  out  their 
scanty  living  by  the  use  of  certain  sea-weeds,  chiefly  those  known 
as  dulse  and  tangle,  which  are  offered  for  sale  in  many  of  our 
Scottish  towns,*  not  in  the  prepared  forms,  which  to  the  Chinese 
and  Japanese  appear  so  appetizing,  but  in  their  crude,  uninviting 
state.      Now,  when  all  food-products  are  being  scientifically  dis- 

^  In  this  hard  spring  of  1883  sea- weed  (Fuctis  vesiculasus)  is  being  largely 
used  by  the  poor  Irish — chiefly  in  Donegal,  where  it  is  prepared  with  Indian 
com. 


VALUE  OF  SEA-WEEDS.  33 

cussed,  tlie  merits  of  this  great  family  are  being  realized — a  family, 
moreover,  of  which  not  one  poisonous  species  is  know  a.  ^  So  now 
wise  men  are  turning  their  attention  to  methods  for  utilizing  these 
edible  properties  as  food  for  man  and  beast ;  and  in  addition  to 
these,  many  other  good  qualities  are  now  being  discovered.  It  is 
found  that  sea-weed  yields  a  jelly  ten  times  as  strong  as  isinglass, 
and,  by  a  new  process,  this  glutinous  matter  can  be  separated  from 
the  weed,  and  an  altogether  new  substance  is  obtained,  to  which 
the  discoverer  (Mr.  Stanford)  has  given  the  name  of  Algin,  It 
closely  resembles  horn,  and  has  all  the  properties  of  strong  glue,  and 
of  a  transparent  starch;  and  has  already  been  applied  to  many 
practical  uses, — ^iu  stiffening  fabrics,  in  applying  carbon  to  the 
lining  of  boilers,  &c.  &c.  'The  weed  from  which  it  has  been 
extracted  is  known  as  cellulose.  It  is  bleached,  to  a  fairly  pure 
white,  and  being  dried  and  pressed,  forms  a  rough  material,  which 
seems  likely  to  prove  an  excellent  substitute  for  rags  in  the  hands 
of  the  paper  manufacturers.  The  other  processes,  to  which  weed  is 
now  subjected  to  obtain  its  salts,  leave  a  large  residuum  of  charcoal, 
which  has  a  value  of  its  own  as  an  effectual  and  economical  deodo- 
riser. Altogether  the  prospects  of  sea-weed  are  looking  up,  and 
there  seems  good  reason  to  hope  that  the  Hebridean  Isles  may  yet 
find  a  source  of  wealth  in  reaping  the  self-sown  crops,  of  these  their 
great  natural  harvest-fields. 

Of  all  beautiful  sandy  shores,  I  know  none  to  compare  with  the 
golden  beach  of  Macnahanish  Bay,  where  the  broad  firm  strand 
stretches  for  miles  along  the  coast,  making  the  pleasantest  drive 
that  can  well  be  imagined,  close  to  the  water's-edge,  where  the 
sand  is  hard  and  firm,  and  the  rippling  wavelets  run  up  past  the 
horses'  feet,  and  retreat  again,  till  you  become  giddy  with  watching 
them,  and  are  fain  to  look  away  across  the  mellow  sea,  to  where  the 
sun  is  sinking  behind  the  hills  of  Islay,  and  the  five  blue  peaks  of 
Juia.  This  drive  along  the  sands  being  the  shortest  road  to  Tarbert, 
it  is  not  only  on  fine  days  that  it  proves  tempting,  and  sometimes 

1  Dr.  Letheb/s  chemical  analysis  shows  that  sea-weed  contains  an  average 
of  60  per  cent  of  mucilaginous  matter,  and  from  9  to  16  per  cent,  of  **  flesh- 
prodndng  '*  materisL 

D 


34  IN   THE  HEBRIDES. 

the  well-trained  horseSy  who  have  never  felt  a  whip,  but  work  glacllj 
in  obedience  to  their  master's  kind  voice,  have  a  difficult  task  to 
make  their  way,  with  blinding  surf  almost  bewildering  them. 

Once,  only  once,  the  beautiful  shore  proved  treacherous.  A  long 
line  of  shingle  had  been  thrown  up,  by  an  unusually  violent 
tempest,  and  great  beds  of  wrack  lay  between  that  and  the  sea,  till 
day  by  day,  fresh  layers  of  sand  were  blown  up,  and  washed  up, 
and  it  all  looked  smooth  and  firm  as  usual.  But  underneath,  the 
hidden  weed  lay  rotting,  and  as  we  drove  confidently  along, 
suddenly  we  found  ourselves  sinking  lower  and  lower  into  dangerous 
quicksands.  The  good  steeds  knew  the  danger,  and  with  violent 
efEort  dragged  us  out  into  the  deeper  water ;  and  so,  got  round  the 
perilous  bank,  which  stretched  far  along  the  shore.  Happily  the 
sea  was  a  dead  calm,  or  we  should  have  had  a  popr  chance  of 
escape,  especially  as  we  had  tied  the  children  into  the  carriage  with 
a  series  of  intricate  knots,  to  prevent  their  jumping  out  to  catch 
jelly-fish  and  such-like  treasures. 


A  WET  DBIVK  35 


CHAPTER  n. 

FROM   CAJfPBBLTON  TO  OBAK. 

'*  The  Isles,  where  dewy  morning  weaves 
Her  chaplet,  with  the  tints  that  twilight  leaves ; 
Where  late  the  sun,  scarce  vanished  from  the  sight, 
And  his  bright  pathway  graced  the  short-lived  night 


>t 


Isles  of  Gigah  and  Islay—Meaning  of  Tarbert— Legend  of  the  Whirlpool— Isles 
of  Elachnave,  Oronsay,  and  Colonsay— Oban— Dimolly— Dunstaflfoage— 
Seals— Old  Tombs— White  Stones— A  Lake  Villagfr— Serpent-shaped 
Mound— American  and  other  Reptile-shaped  Mounds — Gaelic  Serpent 
Lore. 

Rkal  Aigyleshire  rain !    Drenching,  pouring,  soaking,  pitiless  rain  1 
How  it  did  rain ! 

After  such  a  spell  of  sunshine,  why  should  it  have  chosen  this 
▼ery  morning  to  begin  this  cruel  work,  just  as  we  started  for  a  forty- 
sdx  mile  drive,  first  across  the  hills  to  Campbelton,  and  thence  to 
Tarbert,  along  a  coast  whose  beauty  we  had  already  proved,  and 
with  which  we  had  vainly  hoped  to  refresh  our  memories  1  Our 
coQTeyance  was  the  lumbering  old  coach  which  still  runs  between 
Campbelton  and  Tarbert,  and  it  was  suggested  that  we  should  go 
inside ;  but,  thinking  the  remedy  worse  than  the  disease,  we  pre- 
ferred testing  our  good  and  trusty  waterproofs ;  a  panoply  without 
which  they  would  be  rash  indeed  who  could  venture  to  set  foot  in 
the  dominions  of  His  Hieland  Glory,  the  great  MacCailian  Mdr, 
and  brave  his  lawless  rain. 

D   2 


36  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

It  was  some  consolation  that  the  worthies  at  the  various  stages, 
for  once,  allowed  that  it  was  something  more  than  a  "  fine  saf t  day/' 
and  condescended  to  take  refuge  under  their  own  roofs,  and  leave 
drowned  understrappers  to  do  all  the  work ;  while  good  John,  our 
gentle  Jehu,  whose  aversion  to  the  whip  was  as  great  as  that  of 
our  host  at  Losset,  soothed  and  coaxed  obedience  out  of  the  most 
unpromising  quadrupeds.  "  Steady,  my  wee  pet,"  to  a  great  raw- 
boned  brute,  with  a  wicked  eye.  "  Noo,  my  bonnie  lassie,"  to  a 
long-legged,  clumsy  old  cow.  A  very  master  in  the  art  of  kindly 
flattery,  is  this  master  of  the  ribbons. 

As  we  drove  along  the  coast,  we  had  a  farewell  peep  of  the  little 
isle  of  Gigah,  the  burial-place  of  the  Macneils,  a  meet  haven  for 
these  turbulent  island  lords,  with  the  wildest  searwaves  for  ever 
guarding  their  rest.  On  several  of  the  old  tombs  we  can  still  trace 
the  rudely-carved  two-handed  sword,  half  hidden  by  a  coating  of 
warm  dark  moss. 

Some  relics,  too,  there  are,  of  yet  more  ancient  days.  Great 
cairns,  near  which  stand  tall  rough  monoliths,  once,  doubtless,  sug- 
gesting names  that  in  their  day  were  deemed  immortal,  but  of 
which  all  tradition  has  long  since  been  lost.  At  one  place  there  is 
a  group  of  three  such  old  cairns,  and  one  great  monolith,  which  has 
been  carved  into  the  semblance  of  a  cross,  by  some  zealous  Christian 
of  old.  Near  this  is  a  well,  which  the  Macneils  of  yore  had  only  to 
stir,  if  they  were  wind-bound,  and  straightway  a  favourable  gale 
arose,  to  speed  them  on  their  course. 

A  little  further  lie  the  low  shores  of  the  large  island  of  Islay, 
rich  in  traces  of  old  ecclesiastical  buildings,  no  less  than  fourteen 
chapels  having  been  founded  by  the  Lords  of  the  Isles.  In  the 
churchyard  of  Ril-arrow  there  is  a  remarkable  gravestone,  with  the 
figure  of  a  warrior  with  a  conical  head-dress,  and  a  tunic  reaching 
to  the  knees.  At  hia  side  is  a  dirk,  and  in  his  hand  a  sword. 
Kear  this  stone  is  another  bearing  a  large  sword,  and  a  garland  of 
leaves — a  Hebridean  equivalent  for  a  laurel  crown. 

The  burial-ground  of  Kildalton  is  marked  by  two  large  rudely- 
sculptured  stone  crosses. 

Of  more  ancient  interest  is  the  tomb  of  Yla,  or  Eila,  a  Danish 


MEANING  OF  TABBERT.  37 

princess,  who  has  bequeathed  her  name  to  the  island,  and  also  to 
some  of  its  daughters.  A  high  conical  green  hill  above  the  Bay  of 
Knock,  seemed  a  fitting  tumulus  of  nature's  own  building,  so  here 
the  Danish  lady  was  buried,  and  the  spot  is  marked  by  two  great 
upright  stones,  called  "  The  Stones  of  Islay." 

Cairns  and  barrows  have  been  excavated  in  various  parts  of  the 
isle,  and  treasures  of  the  usual  sort,  such  as  brass  fibulse,  stone 
celts,  and  flint  arrow-heads  have  gone  to  enrich  museums. 

Here,  too,  on  the  brink  of  the  river  Laggan,  "  Brian  of  Ha  "  was 
buried,  standing  upright,  and  holding  in  his  hand  a  spear,  such  as 
that  which  he  used  to  dart  at  the  salmon.  The  ruling  passion,  you 
see,  was  strong  in  death.  In  Islay,  beside  Loch  Finlagan,  one  (or 
more)  of  the  old  Lords  of  the  Isles  held  his  court ;  and  standing  on 
a  big  stone  seven  feet  square,  received  the  homage  of  all  his  vassals, 
a  ceremony  graced  by  the  sanction  of  the  Church ;  "  for,"  says  the 
old  chronicle, ''  the  Bishop  of  Argyle  and  seven  priests  did  anoint 
and  crown  him  king  of  the  Isles,  placing  his  father's  sword  in  his 
hand,  whereupon  he  swore  to  protect  the  Islesmen,  and  do  justice  to 
all  his  subjects." 

It  is  curious  to  note  the  strange  quibble  by  which  this  peninsula 
of  Cantyre  came  to  be  included  among  the  Hebrides.  A  very 
narrow  neck  of  land,  such  as  that  which  connects  this  with  the 
mainland,  is  generally  called  Tarbat  or  Tarbert,  from  two  old 
words :  Tarruingy  to  draw,  and  Bata,  a  boat ;  because  in  some  cases 
it  saved  both  time  and  trouble  to  drag  the  boats  across  the  isthmus, 
rather  than  sail  round  the  land.  This  was  especially  true  of  the 
Mull  of  Cantyre,  whose  difficult  navigation  and  fearful  storms  were 
so  dreaded,  that  vessels  of  nine  or  ten  tons  were  frequently  drawn 
by  horses  out  of  the  west  loch  to  that  on  the  east  (a  distance  of 
barely  a  mile),  thus  avoiding  the  long  and  dangerous  sail  all  round 
the  peninsula.  This  fact  was  taken  advantage  of  by  the  Norwegian 
king,  Magnus,  "  the  barefoot  king,"  when  Donald-Bane  of  Scotland 
was  forced  to  cede  to  him  the  Western  Isles,  including  all  placei 
thai  could  he  surrounded  in  a  hoot.  Placing  himself  in  the  stem  of 
a  boat»  he  held  the  rudder,  was  drawn  over  this  narrow  track,  and 
thns  took  possession  of  the  Mull. 


38  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

In  olden  days  the  isles  were  quite  independent  of  the  mainland, 
and  were  ruled  hy  such  piratical  chiefs,  that  at  letigth  Harold  Haar- 
fager  determined  to  annex  them  all,  as  far  south  as  the  Isle  of  Man. 
They  continued  nominally  subject  to  Norway  till  1226,  when  they 
were  transferred  to  Scotland  (not,  however,  as  a  very  peaceful 
possession,  as  it  is  somewhere  about  this  time  that  we  hear  of  the 
King  of  Man  making  over  the  Sudereys  to  Somerled).  About 
eighty  years  later,  the  whole  were  seized  by  one  chief,  whose 
private  property  they  continued  for  200  years,  when  James  V. 
finally  reconquered  theuL 

Well,  it  poured  without  intermission  till  we  reached  Tarbert, 
where  there  still  remain  the  ruins  of  a  castle  built  by  the  Bruce. 
Thence  we  took  the  steamer  to  Lochgilphead,  where  a  smaller  steam- 
boat was  waiting  to  take  us  through  the  Crinal  Canal,  and  we  sat 
on  the  deck  to  catch  a  glimpse  of  old  Duntroon  Castle, — but  it  looked 
grey  and  cold  and  wet,  and  not  a  bit  like  the  same  place  where  we 
used  to  sail,  or  row,  or  scramble  in  the  sunny  summer  evenings. 

At  Crinan  we  again  changed  steamers,  and  still  the  rain  poured 
on :  "  It  was  never  weary."  We  knew  that  on  our  left  lay  the 
Islands  of  Scarba  and  Jura,  between  which  rush  the  mighty  tides, 
which  swirl  and  roar  round  a  hidden  reef  in  mid-channel,  whence 
shelving  rocks  on  every  side,  project  far  under  the  water,  and  so 
create  the  whirlpool  of  Corrievreckan,  "  The  cauldron  of  the  foam- 
ing tide,"  which  boils  and  ferments  as  the  impetuous  currents  meet, 
till  the  waves  are  heaped  up  like  pyramids,  which  break  and  spout 
in  dashing  spray.  Sometimes  this  wild  ferment  makes  the  whole 
sea  white  with  foam,  and  then  the  people  say  that  the  Caillach  (the 
old  hag)  has  put  on  her  kerchief,  and  any  ship  rash  enough  to 
approach  would  meet  its  certain  doom. 

The  legend  of  these  tumultuous  waters  tell  that  the  word 
Bhreacan  (Corrie-Bhreacan),  which  some  have  translated  as  "  foam- 
ing stream,**  was  really  the  name  of  a  brave  young  Danish  prince, 
who  loved  a  daughter  of  the  Lord  of  the  Isles,  and  desired  to  woo 
and  win  her.  Her  father  did  not  favour  his  suit,  yet,  not  willing 
to  offend  the  King  of  Lochlin,  he  answered  craftily,  that  the  prince 
should  indeed  have  his  daughter,  providing  he  would  prove  his 


LEGEND  OF  CORRIEVRECKJlN.  39 

ooQTage  and  his  skill  as  a  seaman,  by  anchoring  his  galley  for  three 
days  and  three  nights  in  the  dread  whirlpool. 

The  young  prince,  nothing  daunted,  returned  to  Lochlin  to  con- 
sult with  his  wise  men  as  to  the  best  means  of  safety.  They  bade 
him  take  three  cables, — one  of  hemp,  one  of  wool,  and  one  of 
woman's  hair.  The  hempen  cable  and  the  woollen  one  were  easy 
to  find,  but  as  to  the  third,  every  hair  of  which  must  come  from 
the  head  of  a  maiden  of  spotless  fame,  it  demanded  such  sacrifice  as 
few  damsels  would  care  to  make.  However  the  prince  was  beloved, 
and  the  fame  of  his  beauty  and  of  his  brave  deeds  in  love  and  war, 
had  leached  the  bower  of  many  a  Danish  maid.  So  the  daughters 
of  the  land  cut  off  their  long  fair  locks,  and  a  cable  was  woven 
thereof,  which  should  resist  the  mightiest  tempest  that  ever  raged 
in  that  seething  cauldron. 

Then  the  prince  returned  to  the  father  of  his  love  and  announced 
his  readiness  to  do  his  will.  He  anchored  in  the  whirlpool  The 
first  day  the  hempen  cable  broke.  The  second  day  the  woollen 
one  parted.  The  third  day  came,  and  the  gift  of  the  maidens  of 
Lochlin  still  held  its  ground.  The  young  prince  was  full  of  glad- 
ness, for  Ids  triumph  seemed  nigh  at  hand.  But  alas  !  for  that  law 
which  makes  the  strength  of  the  mightiest  cable  equal  only  to  its 
weakest  link.  There  was  one  fair  tress  binding  him  to  the  anchor 
of  his  hope  which  had  been  shorn  from  the  head  of  one  whose 
Came  was  no  longer  without  blemish.  So  the  resistless  might  of 
unspotted  purity  was  not  there  to  bind  the  raging  waters,  and  the 
last  rope  parted,  and  the  ship  was  sucked  down  in  the  mad  whirl- 
ing vortex, — down,  down,  down,  to  the  unfathomable  depths  of 


But  the  body  of  the  prince  was  brought  to  land  by  his  faithful 
dog,  and  dragged  to  a  cave  that  bears  his  name,  where  a  little  cairn 
atiU  marks  the  spot  where  Bhreacan  was  buried.  The  dog  returned 
to  the  water,  doubtless  seeking  some  other  friend,  and  he  perished 
in  a  lesser  whirlpool  between  the  Isles  of  Scarba  and  Lunga,  and 
that  Sound  is  still  known  as  the  Grey  Dog's  Slap. 

To  the  north-west  of  Scarba  lies  the  little  island  of  Elachnave, 
where  there  remain  traces  of  some  of  the  very  earliest  monastic 


40  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

buildings,  situated  near  an  ancient  cemetery  where  the  graves  are 
only  marked  by  roughest  wave-worn  rocks,  one  of  which  bears  a 
rudely  graven  cross.  There  are  also  two  beehive  cells  of  slate, 
covered  with  grass,  perhaps  the  humble  homes  of  holy  men  of  old. 

Beyond  Jura  lie  the  sister  isles,  which,  in  memory  of  St. 
Golumba  and  his  companion  St.  Oran,  bears  the  names  of  Oronsay 
and  Colonsay,  their  respective  sizes  bearing  due  proportion  to  the 
fame  of  the  two  men,  Colonsay  being  much  the  larger  island  of  the 
two.  Both  are  hilly,  though  of  no  great  height,  and  are  noted  for 
the  richness  of  their  pasture.  Next  to  lona,  these  isles  possess 
more  extensive  remains  of  religious  houses  than  any  others  in  the 
Hebridean  group.  They  have  also  vestiges  of  prehistoric  times,  as 
Oronsay  has  several  tumuli.  The  ruins  are  those  of  ecclesiastical 
buildings,  founded  by  the  Lords  of  the  Isles  about  the  fourteenth 
century.  On  Oronsay  stood  a  monastery,  of  which  there  remain 
some  cloisters  of  a  very  peculiar  angular  character.  Within  the 
priory  are  several  sculptured  tombs,  and  a  little  apart  stands  a  tall 
round-headed  cross. 

The  abbey  connected  with  this  monastery  stood  on  the  larger 
isle  of  Colonsay,  but  it  has  been  entirely  destroyed,  though  the 
ruins  of  some  smaller  chapels  remain.  St.  Oran's  cell  has  dis- 
appeared within  the  memory  of  persons  still  living.  To  him  was 
dedicated  the  Church  of  Killouran.  Unfortunately  the  four 
hundred  inhabitants  of  the  isle  have  not  been  endowed  with  a  due 
reverence  for  these  sacred  ruins,  which  have  been  treated  as  a  con- 
venient quarry.  Oronsay,  on  which  there  is  but  one  inhabited 
house,  fares  better,  and  its  multitudinous  rabbits  are  no  foes  to 
antiquarians,  so  the  old  ruins  are  here  left  to  the  slow  progress  of 
calm  decay. 

After  the  Reformation  multitudes  of  these  small  churches  were 
allowed  to  fall  into  ruin,  and  a  very  irregular  system  of  Church 
services  was  substituted.  Thus,  in  the  more  distant  isles,  the 
minister,  on  his  occasional  visits,  would  celebrate  the  marriages  and 
baptisms  of  perhaps  two  or  three  years.  On  these  occasions  it  was 
very  important  to  have  the  lads  baptized  before  the  lassies,  for 
should  this  order  be  accidentally  inverted,  the  lassie  who  was 


THE  DIVIDED  FONT  AT   BIRNIK  41 

christeDed  out  of  her  tarn  was  certain  to  grow  a  beard  I  Till  very 
reeent  years  this  was  firmly  believed,  so  far  south  as  Stirlingshire, 
where,  within  my  own  memory,  it  was  alleged  by  the  church  officer, 
as  a  reason  why  the  laird's  infant  daughter  must  on  no  account  be 
baptized  till  after  several  collier  laddies.  So  strongly  was  this 
separation  of  the  sexes  insisted  on,  that  I  know  of  one  old  font 
belonging  to  the  church  at  Birnie  near  Elgin,  which  was  actually 
divided  in  two  by  a  plate  of  iron  let  into  the  stone,  that  the  water 
for  the  baptism  of  males,  might  not  be  mixed  with  that  for  females. 
This  old  font  having  been  discarded  in  favour  of  the  modem  bason, 
was  for  many  years  left  lying  neglected  in  the  kirkyard,  but  I  do 
not  know  whether  it  proved  treasure-trove  to  any  antiquarian. 

The  minister's  greetings  from  these  unbaptized  little  heathens 
were  sometimes  striking.  One  child  on  being  sprinkled  with  cold 
water  exclaimed  passionately,  "  De'il  be  in  your  fingers !  "  which, 
you  will  allow,  was  a  stronger  form  of  remonstrance,  than  the  stick 
of  barley-sugar,  which  we  occasionally  see  employed  in  infantile 
resistance  to  the  means  of  grace  I  It  was,  however,  well  in  keeping 
with  the  character  given  to  a  West  Highland  village  by  its  new 
pastor.  ''  Eh  !  it's  a  pitiful  thing  to  see  children  that  can  neither 
waalk  nor  iaallry  running  about  the  streets,  cursing  and  swearing !  " 
It  sounds  as  if  he  must  have  had  a  dash  of  the  Emerald  Isle,  but 
he  was  described  as  being  ''just  as  Highland  as  a  peat." 

In  these  remote  comers  of  the  earth.  Church  ceremonies  are 
sometimes  considerably  affected  by  wind  and  weather.  There  are 
many  cases  when  one  minister  has  charge  of  several  small  flocks, 
and  has  to  divide  his  care  of  them  as  best  he  can  ;  sometimes  he 
has  to  row  across  a  dangerous  ferry  or  a  sea-loch,  against  wind  and 
tide,  to  reach  the  congregation  awaiting  him  on  the  other  side. 
Sometimes  all  the  efforts  of  the  strong  arms  that  row  him  are 
unavailing,  and  after  battling  for  hours  without  being  able  to  effect 
a  landing,  they  have  to  make  the  best  of  their  way  back  to  the 
island  whence  they  started,  leaving  the  little  flock  to  disperse  at 
their  leisure.  Even  where  no  arm  of  the  sea  intervenes  between 
the  minister  and  his  parochial  work,  a  swollen  river  will  prove 
quite  as  effectual  a  barrier,  and  I  have  heard  stories  that  reminded 


42  IK  THE  HEBRIDES. 

me  forcibly  of  the  form  of  baptism  practised  by  St.  Francis  Xavier, 
when,  sailing  up  the  Indian  river,  he  sprinkled  holy  water  with  a 
long  pole  on  the  astonished  people,  who  assembled  on  either  bank 
to  see  him  pass. 

Dr.  Chalmers  told  a  story  of  a  Highland  minister  having  been 
summoned  to  baptize  an  infant,  whose  parents  lived  on  the  other 
side  of  a  small  stream.  When  he  reached  the  bum,  he  found  it 
was  in  spate,  and  there  were  no  means  of  getting  across.  He  there- 
fore shouted  to  the  father  to  come  down  to  the  bum-side,  and  hold 
the  infant  (as  the  custom  is,  in  Scotland).  He,  himself,  procured 
a  wooden  scoop,  which  he  dipped  in  the  bum,  and  flung  the  water 
across,  aiming  at  the  bairn's  face.  But  the  stream  was  so  wide  that 
he  repeatedly  fell  short  of  the  mark ;  and  the  shout  of  "  Weel  1  has 
it  gotten  any  yet  1 "  was  reiterated  again  and  again,  before  a  satis- 
factory answer  enabled  him  to  conclude  the  service  !  This  I  believe 
to  be  a  fact  of  the  present  century. 

All  this  time  we  were  passing  through  scenery  which  we  believed 
to  be  bewilderingly  lovely,  if  we  could  but  have  seen  it,  instead  of 
the  sheets  of  grey  rain,  which  poured  down  incessantly  from  the 
heavy  clouds.  But  towards  evening,  as  we  neared  Oban — *^  the  quiet 
little  harbour,"  as  its  name  implies, — the  dark  storm  drifted  away, 
and  the  sun  shone  forth  in  penitent  beauty,  changing  the  whole 
face  of  nature.  Instead  of  earth,  sea,  and  sky  being  all  of  one 
leaden  hue,  the  scene  was  now  flooded  with  tender  rainbow-coloured 
light ;  fairy  islands  in  the  far  distance  seemed  to  float  ethereally  on 
the  opal-tinted  sea,  and  the  great  hills  of  MuU  appeared  as  if  rising 
from  the  waves,  like  some  pale  spirit,  faintly  visible  through  the 
tremulous  evening  light. 

Just  beyond  the  town  rises  the  stem  old  Castle  of  DunoUy, 
perched  on  a  g^y  projecting  craig,  which,  rising  abruptly  from  the 
shore,  commands  the  harbour  on  either  side;  a  strong  tower  ot 
defence  in  olden  days,  and  one  which  no  foeman's  galley  could 
approach  unseen.  Kow  a  picturesque  garden  nestles  round  the 
base  of  the  craig,  adding  gem-like  touches  of  colour  to  the  flush  of 
heather  which  lies  in  every  cranny  of  the  grey  rock,  while  a  back- 
ground of  green  and  gold  foliage  serves  as  a  rich  setting  to  the  whole. 


A  FAMILT   OF  SEALS.  43 

Near  the  base  of  the  cliff  one  huge  rock-boulder  stands  upright, 
as  if  placed  there  by  some  giant  hand.  This  is  known  as  the  Dog's 
Stone,  for  here  it  was  that  Fingal  was  wont  to  tie  his  faithful  dog 
Bran,  in  ages  long  before  Macdougals  or  Campbells  had  taken  pos- 
session of  the  land.  Ton  know  this  grim  old  fortiess  of  Dunollj 
was  the  eerie  where  the  Macdougals  of  Lorn,  eagle-like,  built  their 
nest  overhanging  the  waves.  They  were  lineal  descendants  of  the 
first  Doagal,  Lord  of  the  Isles,  son  of  the  great  Somerled,  whose 
place  of  burial  we  noted  at  SaddelL  The  old  castle  is  now  in  ruins, 
later  generations  having  preferred  to  build  themselves  a  modem  home 
in  a  more  sheltered  nook,  where,  among  other  family  treasures,  they 
still  retain  the  far-famed  brooch  of  Lorn,  snatched  from  the  Bruce, 
bj  their  ancestor  John  of  Lorn. 

Resolved  to  make  the  most  of  so  beautiful  an  evening,  we 
wandeied  along  the  shore  in  the  direction  of  Gallanach,  by  far  the 
most  lovely,  and  yet  the  least  frequented,  road  in  the  neighbourhood 
of  Oban,  winding  beneath  grey  crags,  close  to  the  sea ;  and  disclos- 
ing at  every  turn,  some  fresh  vision  of  beauty, — dreamy  isles,  or 
tiie  nearer  mainland. 

The  dewy  freshness  of  a  sweet  spring  morning  tempted  us  forth 
betimes,  to  explore  another  fine  old  ruin, — ^the  Castle  of  Dunstaff- 
nage,  a  far  more  imposing  mass  of  building  than  Dunolly,  though 
lacking  the  grandeur  of  its  rocky  ramparts.  But  the  low  grassy 
ahofre  on  which  it  stands,  is  washed  all  round  by  the  blue  sea-loch, 
so  that  at  high  tide  it  is  in  fact  an  island,  and  the  waters,  coming 
dose  in  shore,  serve  as  a  mirror  to  reflect  the  grey  weather-beaten 
fortiess,  only  rendering  its  image  in  mellower  tones  than  the  stem 
walls  ever  wear  in  reality. 

Nor  is  its  beauty  lessened,  when  the  receding  waters  expose  the 
dark  rocks  fringed  with  golden  sea-weed, — ^rocks  on  which  you  may 
sometimes  surprise  a  whole  family  of  seals  basking  in  the  warm  sun- 
shine,— a  grey  old  grandmother  surrounded  by  her  children  and 
grandchildren,  the  latter  dark  in  colour  as  the  dry  wrack  on  which 
they  lie.  Occasionally  the  family-party  includes  a  nursing  mother 
and  her  baby !  These  little  additions  to  the  family  only  occur  once 
a  year,  and  rarely  exceed  one  at  a  time,  though  twins  are  not  un- 


44  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

known.  The  mother-seal  seeks  the  most  secluded  spot  she  can 
discover,  and  then  comes  ashore  to  give  birth  to  her  little  one, 
which  almost  immediately  takes  to  the  water,  swimming  bravely. 
This  happy  family  will  slip  shyly  into  the  water  at  your  approach, 
but  perhaps  you  may  wile  them  back  with  some  plaintive  song,  for 
they  have  keen  ears  for  music,  and  will  brave  even  the  dreaded 
human  presence  for  the  sake  of  some  favourite  melody.  Often, 
while  sailing  on  this  very  loch,  we  have  tested  this  curious  fact, 
and  watched  the  black  shining  heads  appearing  from  time  to  time, 
as  these  music-loving  creatures  swam  in  the  wake  of  our  galley, 
attracted  by  the  sound  of  songs,  or  of  old  Scotch  tunes  played  on 
an  accordioa 

Talking  of  ''  grey  old  grandmothers,"  I  remember  one  patriarchal 
seal,  who,  in  her  old  ^e,  had  turned  so  silvery  white,  that  as  she 
lay  on  the  rocks  close  in  shore,  we  all  with  one  accord  agreed  that 
it  must  be  a  sheep  which  had  fallen  from  the  cMSa  overhead.  As 
we  sailed  nearer,  the  likeness  seemed  to  increase,  even  to  the  ex- 
perienced eyes  of  our  older  sportsmen ;  so  we  determined  to  put 
off  a  boat  and  rescue  the  poor  sufferer  who  lay  so  still  and  appar- 
ently helpless,  only  from  time  to  time,  turning  her  head  uneasily 
at  our  approach.  It  was  not  till  we  were  within  easy  shot  (a  shot 
which,  of  course,  was  never  fired)  that  the  old  lady  condescended 
to  lift  herself  up,  look  down  on  us  in  calm  surprise,  and  with 
a  wriggle  and  a  plunge,  disappeared  into  the  cool  clear  waves, 
leaving  the  invaders  very  much  astonished  at  their  own  lack  of 
discrimination. 

In  a  cool  shady  glade,  a  stone's  throw  from  the  castle,  stands  a 
ruined  chapel,  ivy-clad,  where  many  a  carved  stone  tells  of  the 
sleepers  who  have  here  found  so  calm  a  resting-place  after  life's 
turmoil — a  lonely  spot,  seldom  trodden  by  human  foot,  but  haunted 
by  white-winged  sea-birds  that  float  spirit-like  in  mid  air,  sometimes 
alighting  on  the  hallowed  ground,  and  peering  about  inquisitively, 
as  they  walk  solemnly  over  tombs  of  Vikings  and  Chiefs  of  old. 

Apart  from  the  exceeding  natural  beauty  which  lends  such  a 
charm  to  all  this  coast,  there  is  the  special  interest  of  countless  old 
legends,  which  connect  not  only  these  grey  ruins,  but  all  the  country 


HOMES  AND  QRAVfiS  OF  EABLT  BRITONS.  45 

TOimdy  with  the  successive  holders  of  the  soil, — those  divers  races 
who  by  tarns  have  swept  over  the  land,  each  leaving  their  little 
mark  behind  them. 

The  very  name  of  this  district — Beregonium — ^falls  strangely  on 
the  ear,  accustomed  rather  to  the  sound  of  Celtic  or  of  Norse 
than  to  such  classic  old  Latin,  and  reminds  us  of  the  days  when 
Boman  invaders,  having  driven  out  the  earlier  settlers,  seem  to  have 
recognized  the  importance  of  this  position  as  a  key  alike  to  the 
Hebrides  and  the  western  coast.  Here,  in  the  massive  headland 
(which,  jutting  into  the  sea,  commands  both  plain  and  ocean),  they 
found  a  position  so  strongly  fortified  by  Nature's  ramparts  of  rugged 
lock,  as  to  require  but  small  aid  from  human  skill  to  convert  it  into 
an  impregnable  encampment. 

Of  the  original  inhabitants,  little  is  of  course  known,  but  this 
spot  is  believed  to  have  been  one  of  the  principal  settlements  of  the 
Dalriads,  if  not  the  capital  of  their  kingdom.  Certain  it  is,  that 
many  of  the  oldest  l^ends  of  Ossian  cluster  round  this  immediate 
neighbourhood,  where  Fingal  is  said  to  have  held  his  court  and 
shared  with  his  warriors  in  wild  feasts  and  frays. 

From  Dunstaffnage  we  overlook  a  desolate  tract  of  wide  flat  moor- 
land, known  as  Loch  Nell  Moss,  lying  between  the  blue  waters  of 
Loch  Etive  and  the  broad  Atlantic. 

Here  various  traces  have  recently  been  discovered  of  the  homes 
and  graves  of  our  Pagan  ancestors,  suggesting  dim  and  shadowy 
Tisions  of  their  life  in  far  remote  ages.  Half  way  across  the  Moss 
rises  a  large  cairn,  built  of  rounded  water-worn  stones,  and  sur- 
rounded by  stunted  trees.  This  has  recently  been  excavated  ;  and 
in  the  heart  of  the  tumulus  were  found  two  megalithic  chambers, 
containing  human  remains  and  urns.  Also  divers  white  quartz 
stones,  such  as  various  Pagan  nations  were  wont  to  bury  with  their 
dead — possibly  as  emblems  of  immortality  and  of  sin  forgiven  or 
cancelled,  as  when  the  Greeks  of  old  symbolized  a  release  from 
some  obligation  by  the  giving  or  receiving  of  a  white  stone, — a 
custom  probably  alluded  to  in  the  book  of  Eevelation  in  the 
promise,  *^  To  him  that  overcometh  ....  I  will  give  a  white  stone, 
and  in  the  stone  a  new  name  written." 


46  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

In  the  present  instance,  the  white  stones  were  arranged  in  pairs, 
on  a  ledge  of  rock  projecting  above  the  urns,  a  single  stone  being 
placed  at  each  end  of  this  double  row ;  another  single  white  pebble 
was  found  inside  one  of  the  urns. 

A  considerable  number  of  similar  pebbles  of  white  quartz  have 
recently  been  discovered  in  various  old  British  tombs  on  the  Isle  of 
Cambrae,  as  also  within  the  Sacred  Circle  on  the  Isle  of  Man ;  a 
circle,  by  the  way,  which  from  time  immemorial  has  been  held  in 
such  reverence,  that  to  this  day  the  Parliameut  of  the  island  is  there 
convened.  These  pebbles  were  also  found  in  most  of  the  old  tombs 
recently  excavated  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Dundee,  in  fact,  so 
frequent  was  their  presence,  that  it  was  common  for  the  workmen 
employed  in  excavating  to  exclaim,  "  Here  are  the  two  stones  !  now 
we  will  get  the  bones."  Rock  crystal  is  sometimes  found  in  lieu 
of  the  white  quartz. 

Akin  to  these  pebbles,  in  their  symbolic  connection  with  the 
religious  and  funereal  rites  of  our  ancestors,  are  the  conical  masses 
of  white  quartz  found  entombed  with  human  remains  in  tumuli  at 
Inverary,  Dundee,  Letcombe  Castle  in  Berks  and  Maiden  Castle  near 
Weymouth — precisely  similar  to  those  found  in  excavations  at 
Nineveh  (now  to  be  seen  in  the  British  Museum),  with  this  exception, 
that  on  the  latter  are  carved  representations  of  serpents,  and  of  the 
sun  and  moon. 

Turning  from  these  dwellings  of  the  dead,  to  the  sunny  shores  of 
Loch  Etive,  we  next  come  on  traces  of  a  lake  village,  of  considerable 
size,  and  in  fair  preservation.  Here,  on  removing  accumulations  of 
peat-moss,  which  would  seem  to  have  been  the  growth  of  twenty,  or 
perhaps  thirty  centuries,  a  series  of  oval  palings  were  found,  still 
surrounded  by  wooden  stakes^  which  doubtless  once  supported 
conical  thatched  roofs,  like  those  dwellings  of  the  old  Gauls  de- 
scribed by  Strabo  as  circular,  with  lofty  tapering  roofs  of  straw. 

However  suggestive  to  the  initiated,  are  these  slight  remains  of 
the  homes  of  their  ancestors,  they  offer  small  attraction  to  the  general 
public,  compared  with  the  hints  of  the  ancestral  worship,  recently 
discovered  in  Glen  Feochan  in  the  rival  district  of  Loch  Nell, 
which  (though  bearing  the  same  name  as  the  Moss  aforesaid),  lies 


THE  SERPENT-MOUND  OF  LOCH  NELL.  47 

about  three  miles  on  the  other  side  of  Oban — a  lonely  lake,  on 
whose  brink  lies  a  huge  Serpent-shaped  Mound. 

The  carriage-road  winds  along  the  shore,  and  through  broken 
hnmmocky  ground,  in  some  places  clothed  with  grass,  in  others 
with  heather  and  bracken.  But  for  the  presence  of  one  of  the  few 
initiated,  who  had  fortunately  accompanied  us,  we  should  assuredly 
liave  passed  close  below  the  heathery  mound  which  forms  the 
Serpent's  tail  (in  fact  the  road  has  been  cut  right  across  the  tip  of 
it),  without  ever  suspecting  that  it  differed  from  the  surrounding 
moorland. 

Nevertheless  it  is  a  very  remarkable  object,  and  one,  moreover, 
which  rises  conspicuously  from  the  flat  grassy  plain,  that  stretches 
for  some  distance  on  either  side,  with  scarcely  an  undulation, 
save  two  artificial  circular  mounds,  in  one  of  which  lie  several  large 
stones,  forming  a  cromlecL  These  circles  are  situated  a  short 
distance  to  the  south,  to  the  right  of  the  Eeptile,  "but  too  far  to  be 
shown  in  the  sketch. 

Finding  ourselves  thus  unconsciously  in  the  very  presence  of  the 
Great  Dragon,  we  hastened  to  improve  our  acquaintance,  and  in  a 
couple  of  minutes  had  scrambled  on  to  the  ridge  which  forms  his 
back-bone,  and  thence  perceived  that  we  were  standing  on  an 
artificial  mound  three  hundred  feet  in  length,  forming  a  double  curve 
like  a  huge  letter  S,  and  wonderfully  perfect  in  anatomical  outline. 
This  we  perceived  the  more  perfectly  on  reaching  the  head,  which 
lies  at  the  western  end,  whence  diverge  small  ridges,  which  may 
have  represented  the  paws  of  the  reptile.  On  the  head  rests  a 
circle  of  stones,  supposed  to  be  emblematic  of  the  solar  disc,  and 
exactly  corresponding  with  the  solar  circle  as  represented  on  the 
head  of  the  mystic  serpents  of  Egypt  and  Phoenicia,  and  in  the 
gveat  American  Serpent  Mound. 

Previous  to  1871  there  still  remained  in  the  centre  of  this  circle, 
some  traces  of  an  altar,  which,  thanks  to  the  depredations  of  cattle 
and  herd-boys,  have  since  wholly  disappeared.  The  people  of  the 
neighbourhood  have  an  old  tradition  that  in  remote  ages  this  was  a 
place  of  public  execution,  and  from  various  analogies  in  the  customs 
of  other  nations,  it  seems  likely  enough  that  this  was  the  case,  and 


48  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

that  this  wild  glen,  may  have  been  to  many,  the  valley  of  the 
shadow  of  death,  whether  their  lives  were  taken  judicially  or  offered 
in  sacrifice. 

The  circle  was  excavated  on  the  12  th  October,  1871,  and  within 
it  were  found  three  large  stones,  forming  a  chamber,  which  contained 
human  bones,  charcoal,  and  charred  hazd-nuU.  Surely  the  spirits 
of  our  Pagan  ancestors  must  rejoice  to  see  how  faithfully  we,  their 
descendants,  continue  to  burn  our  hazel-nuts  on  Hallowe'en,  their  old 
autumnal  Fire  Festival,  though  our  modern  divination  is  practised 
only  with  reference  to  such  a  trivial  matter  as  the  faith  of  sweethearts! 
A  flint  instrument  was  also  found,  minutely  serrated  at  the  edge ; 
nevertheless,  it  was  at  once  evident,  on  opening  the  cairn,  that  the 
place  had  already  been  ransacked,  probably  in  secret,  by  treasure- 
seekers,  as  there  is  no  tradition  of  any  previous  excavation  for 
scientific  purposes  having  been  made  here. 

On  the  removal  of  the  peat-moss  and  heather  from  the  ridge  of 
the  serpent's  back,  it  was  found  that  the  whole  length  of  the  spine 
was  carefully  constructed  with  regularly  and  symmetrically-placed 
stones  at  such  an  angle  as  to  throw  off  rain;  an  adjustment  to 
which  we  doubtless  owe  the  preservation,  or  at  least  the  perfection, 
of  this  most  remarkable  relic.  To  those  who  know  how  slow  is  the 
growth  of  peat-moss,  even  in  damp  and  undrained  places,  the  depth 
to  which  it  has  here  attained  (though  in  a  dry  and  thoroughly 
exposed  situation  and  raised  from  seventeen  to  twenty  feet  above 
the  level  of  the  surrounding  moss),  tells  of  many  a  long  century  of 
silent  undisturbed  growth,  since  the  days  when  the  Serpent's  spine 
was  the  well-worn  path  daily  trodden  by  reverent  feet. 

The  spine  is,  in  fact,  a  long  narrow  causeway,  made  of  large 
stones,  set  like  the  vertebrae  of  some  huge  animal.  They  form  a 
ridge  sloping  off  in  an  angle  at  each  side,  which  is  continued  down- 
wards with  an  arrangement  of  smaller  stones,  suggestive  of  ribs. 
The  mound  has  been  formed  in  such  a  position  that  the  worshipper 
standing  at  the  altar  would  naturally  look  eastward,  directly  along 
the  whole  length  of  the  Great  Beptile,  and  across  the  dark  lake,  to 
the  triple  peaks  of  Ben  Cruachan.  This  position  must  have  been 
carefully  selected,  as  from  no  other  point  are  the  three  peaks  visible. 


REPTILE   MOUNDS.  49 

This  reverence  for  some  Triune  object,  whether  a  triple-pointed 
hill,  the  junction  of  three  rivers,  or  the  neighbourhood  of  three 
lakes,  seems  to  have  been  a  marked  characteristic  of  almost  every 
ancient  faith,  and  we  may  well  believe  that  the  Druids  were  not 
likely  to  pass  by  a  great  mountain,  with  its  threefold  summit 
towering  heavenward,  as  if  to  draw  thither  the  eyes  and  hearts  of  a 
race  who  were  careful  to  consecrate  all  such  natural  types  in  their 
worship  of  Nature's  God. 

Attention  was  first  called  to  this  mound  by  Mr.  Phen^,  and  it 
was  a  knowledge  of  this  tendency  that  first  led  him  to  examine 
minutely  all  the  least-trodden  glens  in  the  neighbourhood  of  any 
snch  natural  features,  as  for  instance  round  the  Eildon  and  Arran 
hills — seeking  for  traces  which  should  mark  the  spot  as  sacred; 
and  in  each  case,  among  other  so-called  Druidic  remains,  he  has 
fonnd  just  such  mounds  of  reptile  form  as  he  was  in  search  of — 
none,  however,  so  remarkable  as  this  strange  old  Serpent,  which 
for  so  many  centuries  has  lain  here  undisturbed,  as  if  guarding  the 
valley. 

All  of  these  are  more  or  less  akin  to  the  Beptile  Mounds  dis- 
covered in  Ohio  and  Wisconsin  by  Messrs.  Squier  and  Lapham, 
always  in  connection  with  sacrificial  or  sepulchral  remains.  One  of 
these  in  particular  is  of  an  unmistakably  serpentine  form;  and 
the  position  of  the  altar  in  the  circle  or  oval  at  the  head  of  the 
Serpent  is  identical  with  that  of  this  Argyleshire  mound,  the  head 
in  each  case  lying  towards  the  west.*  The  American  mound  is, 
however,  on  a  larger  scale  than  its  Scotch  cousin,  being  altogether  a 
thousand  feet  long.  It  points  towards  three  rivers,  thus  indicating 
the  reverence  for  the  triple  symbol, — ^another  instance  of  which 
occurs  on  the  hill  known  as  Lapham's  Peak,  on  whose  lofty 
anmniit  three  artificial  mounds  were  found,  carefully  constructed  ot 
stone  and  earth, — materials  which  must  have  been  transported 
thither  with  very  great  labour. 

Whatever  may  have  been  the  origin  of  these  huge  serpent- 
shaped  mounds,  their  existence  seems  to  suggest  a  clue  to  the 
meaning  of  various  ancient  legends  concerning  enormous  serpents 
which  covered  acres  of  land;  the  very  fact  of  their  dimensions 

B 


50  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

being  given  in  terms  of  land-measurement  seeming  to  imply  that 
the  writers  merely  alluded  in  poetic  terms  to  Ophite  or  Draconite 
temples  where  these  symbols  were  worshipped. 

Thus  we  hear  of  Dragons  in  Mauritania  so  great  that  they  were 
covered  with  grass.  Alexander  the  Great  was  taken  to  see  a 
Sacred  Dragon  five  acres  in  extent,  lying  in  a  low  valley,  surrounded 
by  a  high  wall :  to  it  the  Indians  offered  sacrifices  of  flocks  and 
herds.  Strabo  mentions  two  such  Dragons  in  India,  one  measuring 
eighty  cubits  in  length,  the  other  a  hundred  and  forty.  And  on 
the  plains  of  Syria,  near  the  land  of  Snake-adoring  Hivites,  lay  a 
Serpent  about  an  acre  in  length,  of  such  bulk  that  two  horsemen 
riding  on  cither  side  could  not  see  each  other,  while  its  mouth  was 
so  great  that  a  man  might  ride  in  thereat — an  experiment  not 
likely  to  be  tried  ii^ere  the  reptile  a  living  creature  ! 

But  all  these  are  dwarfed  by  the  legendary  Dragon  of  Damascus, 
which  is  described  as  a  serpent  covering  fifty  acres  of  land !  a 
description  which  Bryant  interprets  as  including  a  grove  and 
garden  round  the  Ophite  temple.  He  also  quotes  Ovid's  account  of 
the  serpent  Python,  as  covering  several  acres,  alluding  surely,  not 
to  the  serpent  itself,  but  to  that  temple  of  Delphi  which  Apollo 
built  with  great  stones  on  the  spot  where  he  had  slain  the  Python 
— ^a  temple  which  Stukeley  infers  to  have  been  similar  to  our  own 
great  temple  of  Avebury  or  Aubury  in  Wiltshire,  t.  e,  two  small 
double  circles  within  one  large  circle  whence  started  two  wavy 
serpentine  avenues,  forming  the  Ophite  symbol ;  and  although  hi^ 
theories  on  this  subject  are  now  commonly  held  in  ridicule,  it 
should  at  least  be  remembered  that  the  form  was  far  more  perfect 
in  his  day  (1 723)  than  it  now  is,  many  great  stones  having  been 
broken  up  by  farmers  in  his  time,  and  this  ruthless  work  of  destruc- 
tion, still  continuing  mercilessly  when  Deane  wrote  in  1830,  so 
that  where  Stukeley  counted  a  hundred  upright  stones,  Deane  saw 
only  eight,  and  similar  devastation  was  everywhere  evident. 

In  our  own  British  Isles  comparatively  few  traces  of  Serpeut- 
worship  are  to  be  found ;  yet,  considering  how  commonly  the  ador- 
ation of  Sun  and  Serpent  are  linked  together — that  both  are  said  to 
have  been  reverenced  by  the  Druids — and  that  in  all  countries  where 


ENGLISH  DRAGON  LEGENDS.  51 

the  worship  of  the  Serpent  haa  prevailed  (as  in  Greece,  Italy  and 
Uindo^tan)  he  was,  or  is,  always  recognized  as  a  Gom-god,^  to 
whom  special  offerings  must  be  made  at  seed-time  and  in  harvest — 
it  iA  worthy  of  note  that,  till  within  the  last  century  all  manner  of 
customs  for  the  good  of  the  crops,  were  kept  up,  on  the  days  which 
in  olden  times  were  observed  as  Sun-festivals. 

Moreover,  in  the  shadowy  mythology  of  early  Britain,  we  hear  of 
a  god  Hu,  who  was  worshipped  as  the  Dragon-ruler  of  the  world, 
and  whose  car  was  drawn  by  serpents  :  there  was  also  a  goddess 
Ccridwen  answering  to  Ceres,  who  had  a  car  similarly  yoked  with  a 
serpentine  team.^ 

An  inference  of  the  same  sort  may  be  drawn  from  a  veiy  curious 
old  Bardic  poem,  concerning  Uther  Pendrigon,  the  Wonderful 
Dragon,^  descriptive  of  the  religious  rites  of  the  early  English, 
wherein  the  worshipper,  while  calling  on  Bel,  the  Dragon  Ring, 
describes  himself  as  making  the  orthodox  turn  sunwise^  first  round 
the  consecrated  lake,  then  round  the  sanctuary,  whereon  is  depicted 
the  gliding  king  ;  while  within  the  sacred  circle  of  huge  stones,  the 
Great  Dragon  (evidently  a  living  serpent)  moves  round  over  the 
vessels  containing  the  drink-offering — whence  it  may  be  inferred  that 

'  Even  in  the  far  away  isolated  Fijian  Isles  the  Serpent-Gk)d  Raitomaibulu 
was  worshipped  as  Lord  of  Life,  and  God  of  the  Crops. 

*  Ceridwen,  This  was  the  goddess  in  whose  honour  our  ancestors  used  to 
dress  up  an  image  made  of  com,  and  crowned  with  flowers,  which  was  carried 
borne  triumphantly  with  the  last  load  of  com ;  while  the  reapers  sang  the  song 
of  harvest  home,  to  the  music  of  pipes  and  drums. 

A  trace  of  this  old  custom  still  lingers  in  some  of  the  northern  counties  of 
England,  where  the  "  Cam,"  or  com  baby,  still  figures  at  the  harvest-home, 
which  is  commonly  called  the  Cam-Supper— a  name  apparently  not  derived 
from  Cora,  but  from  Cameus,  under  which 'name  the  Sun-God  was  sometimes 
worshipped  by  the  Celts  (as  in  the  far  East,  Krishna  the  Sun-God,  is  always 
worshipped  as  Cama,  ^  the  Radiant  One  ").  This  name  is  preserved  in  the 
Annoric  temple  of  Camac,  while  m  the  Gaetic  we  have  Camadi,— and  sacred 
bonfires  were  Cam-fires.  Hence  too,  the  Roman  Spring-festival  of  the 
Carnival,  with  its  mad  mirth.  The  alteration  of  the  word  to  Came-vale, 
**  adieu  to  flesh/'  was  simply  the  usual  expedient  of  adapting  Pagan  feasts  to 
Christian  uses. 

>  Quoted  in  *  The  Worship  of  the  Serpent,*  by  the  Rev.  J.  B.  Deana 

E  2 


52  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

the  British  Druids,  like  the  Syrian  Ophites,  and  Egyptian  wor- 
shippers of  Isis  and  Bacchus,  encouraged  the  serpent  to  glide  over 
the  gifts  on  the  altar. 

Mr.  Deane  notices,  as  a  curious  coincidence,  that  the  word  draig, 
here  translated  dragon,  signifies  also  the  Supreme  God.  Also  that, 
in  one  of  these  poems  the  priest  enumerates  his  own  titles  as  a 
Druid,  a  Prophet,  a  Serpent,  Hence  it  seems  probable,  that  the 
numerous  legends  which  tell  of  the  early  Christian  saints  having 
conquered  serpents  (as  when  St.  Hilda  changed  all  the  Yorkshire 
snakes  into  Ammonites,  when  St.  Patrick  banished  them  from 
Ireland,  and  St  Columba  from  lona,  while  St.  Keyna  changed  those 
of  Somersetshire  into  upright  stones),  had  reference  to  the  con- 
version or  expulsion  of  their  worshippers. 

It  may  be,  that  the  great  mound  lying  before  us,  beside  the  dark 
mountain  tarn,  may  have  been  just  such  a  temple  as  this  old  bard 
describes,  and  that  within  the  circle  of  stones,  a  living  serpent  may 
in  truth  have  glided  over  the  offerings  of  a  people,  taught  by  these 
priests  of  an  Oriental  faith  to  unite  this  worship  with  that  of  the 
great  Day  Star ;  a  people  who  day  by  day  gathered  round  this 
strange  altar,  while  watching  for  the  first  streak  of  dawn  in  the 
eastern  sky — the  first  glowing  ray  which,  gilding  Ben  Cruachan's 
triple  peak,  told  them  that  the  great  Life-giving  Sun-god  had  once 
more  arisen  to  gladden  the  earth. 

Perhaps  we  ought  rather  to  say  Sun-goddess,  inasmuch  as  Sun 
and  Mountain  are  alike  feminine  in  the  Gaelic  tongue. 

It  is  a  strange  vision  that  rises  before  us,  as  our  fancy  pictures 
this  gloomy  valley  beside  the  dark  waters,  not  silent  and  solitary  as 
now,  but  thronged  with  worshippers,  congregating  from  every  re- 
mote comer  of  hill  and  valley  to  witness  the  awful  sacrifices  which 
white-robed  priests  with  shaven  crowns,  ofiTered  upon  the  mystic 
altar,  in  presence  of  the  Mountain  and  the  Dragon. 

Whatever  may  have  been  the  true  origin  of  this  snake  rever- 
ence in  Britain,  certain  it  is  that  in  countless  old  Gaelic  legends 
of  the  West  Coast  and  of  the  Hebrides,  the  serpent  holds  a  place  of 
such  importance,  as  we  can  hardly  imagine  to  have  been  acquired 
by  such  puny  representatives  of  the  race  as  are  to  be  found  on  ou 


INDIAN   DRAGON-LEGENDS.  53 

British  moors,  though  we  are  bound  to  confess  that  Ben  Cruachan 
does  give  shelter  to  an  unwonted  multitude  of  small  adders.  And 
although  Hugh  Miller  tells  of  the  existence  of  fossil  Saurians  in  the 
Isle  of  Eigg,  we  can  hardly  give  our  ancestors  credit  for  pushing 
their  geiilogical  researches  so  far,  or  for  tracing  their  traditions  from 
such  pre-Adamite  sources. — It  certainly  is  remarkable  that  almost 
all  these  legends  are  also  to  be  found  in  the  folk-lore  of  India  and 
Persia. 

Thus  the  story  of  how  Fraoch,  for  the  sake  of  his  golden-haired 
love,  fought  with,  and  killed,  and  was  killed  by,  a  terrible  water- 
snake  which  infested  Loch  Awe,  has  its  counterpart  in  the  history 
of  Krishna,  the  Indian  Sun-god,  who  for  love  of  the  pretty  milk- 
maids, fought  a  terrible  battle  d,  Foutrance  with  the  black  water- 
serpent,  which  poisoned  the  blue  waters  of  the  sacred  Jumna, 
coming  up  thence  to  devour  the  herds  which  pastured  between 
Muttra  and  Bindrabund.  More  fortunate  than  Fraoch,  Krishna 
slew  his  foe  without  receiving  dire  injury  himself,  though  his  heel 
was  bitten  in  the  conflict. 

When  the  dragon  was  dead,  his  carcase  dried  up,  and  became  a 
mountain,  whereon  children  played  in  peace,  a  happy  termination 
to  the  story,  and  one  which  possibly  alluded  to  some  serpent  or 
dragon-shaped  mound,  which  may  have  existed  on  the  shores  of 
the  Jumna,  just  as  this  does  here,  on  the  brink  of  Loch  NeU. 
The  Indian  story  goes  on  to  tell  that  men  and  animals  afterwards 
sought  refuge  with  Krishna  within  the  serpent's  head — a  story 
which  seems  to  refer  to  some  custom  of  sacrifice,  or  possibly  of 
self-immolation,  and  which  tallies  curiously  with  the  Gaelic 
tradition  before  alluded  to,  which  points  out  the  Argyleshire 
Serpent  Mound  as  an  ancient  place  of  execution  or  sacrifice. 

Very  remarkable  is  the  place  of  the  Serpent  in  the  Medicinal 
lore  of  almost  all  lands.  In  Cashmere,  for  instance  (where  in 
bygone  times  the  worship  of  the  Naga — the  Divine-Snake — was 
formerly  so  prevalent,  that  in  the  time  of  Akbar,  a.d.  1560,  there 
were  in  that  kingdom  forty-five  temples  devoted  exclusively  to  his 
service,  while  in  seven  hundred  others  there  were  carved  images  of 
him,  which  received  due  share  of  adoration),  the  descendants  of 


54  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

the  Kaga  tribes  are  to  this  day  remarkable  for  their  medical  skill, 
and  possession  of  healing  arts  and  nostrums,  which  their  ancestors 
(in  common  with  Esculapius),  received  from  the  health-giving 
Serpent. 

The  same  skill  in  healing,  is  attributed  to  him,  by  many  nations. 
The  Celts  acquired  their  medical  lore  by  ^drinking  serpent-broth ; 
the  Mexicans  hung  snake-bones  round  the  neck  of  the  sick;  in 
Pegu,  at  the  birth  of  a  child,  a  snake's  tongue  is  tied  within  a  tiny 
bell  and  hung  round  the  baby's  neck  as  a  preventive  of  sickness 
and  harm.  And  in  many  parts  of  India  it  is  customary,  in  cases 
of  illness,  to  make  a  serpent  of  clay  or  metal,  literally  a  brazen 
serpent,  and  offer  sacrifice  to  it  on  behalf  of  the  sufferer. 

In  various  Gaelic  legends  a  white  snake  figures  in  this  connection. 
Thus,  when  a  nest  of  seven  serpents  is  discovered,  containing  six 
brown  adders  and  one  jnire  white  ane,  the  latter  caught  and  boiled, 
confers  the  gift  of  omniscience,  on  the  first  man  who  tastes  of  this 
serpent  "bree"  (broth),  and  who  thereafter,  becomes  the  wisest  of 
doctors.  This  identiciU  story  occurs  also  in  the  German  folk-lore. 
I  have  also  heard  it  asserted  that  to  this  day  both  Arabs  and 
Hindoos  eat  the  heart  and  liver  of  serpents,  hoping  thereby  to 
acquire  a  knowledge  of  the  language  of  animals. 

In  all  old  Gaelic  legends  great  reverence  was  always  due  to  the 
White  Snake,  which  was  described  as  the  king  of  snakes.  It  is 
believed  by  some  of  the  old  Highlanders  still  to  exist  in  the  land — 
a  faith  which  is  occasionally  confirmed  by  the  appearance  of  a 
silvery  gray  specimen.  In  Ceylon  a  silvery  white  snake  is  some- 
times found,  which  the  natives  likewise  recognize  as  the  King  of 
the  Cobras,  and  venerate  exceedingly.  I  have  myself  seen  one  of 
these,  the  sanctity  of  which  was  duly  impressed  on  me.  The  Arabs 
of  Mount  Ararat  have  also  a  story  of  a  great  white  snake,  and  of  a 
royal  race  of  serpents,  to  which  all  others  do  homage. 

One  after  another  these  quaint  legends  rose  to  our  minds  as  we 
looked  down  on  the  grim  old  Guardian  of  Glen  Feochan,  revealing 
himself  alternately  as  a  thing  of  darkness  and  of  light,  in  every 
changing  aspect  of  the  hour.  Xow  and  then  a  sharp  sudden  shower 
swept  over  the  liills,  casting  deep  cloud-shadows  on  land  and  loch ; 


THE  DRAGON  OF  LOCH  NELL.  55 

then  the  sun  once  more  buisi  forth^  Bheddiog  a  golden  glorj  oyer 
the  purples,  browns,  and  golds,  of  the  many-tinted  moorland. 

Bat  the  dragon  cared  neither  for  sun  nor  showers.  He  lay  still 
in  his  place,  couching  by  the  waters,  and  keeping  ceaseless  vigil,  as 
he  had  already  done  for  centuries  untold,  and  as  doubtless  he  will 
continue  to  do,  till  some  mighty  convulsion  shall  shake  the  strong 
foundations  of  the  earth,  and  bury  him  beneath  the  tumbled 
fragments  of  the  hills. 


CHAPTER  III. 
lONA. 

Sacred  Isles— The  Druid's  Holy  Isle— Brighit,  the  Fire  Goddess— Traces  of 
Pagan  Customs- The  360  Grosses— Rude  Stone  Monuments— 360  Sacred 
Stones  at  Mecca — Black  Stones— Magic  Crystals — ^Solar  Turns— St. 
Columba— His  Work— His  Death— Tonsure— Book  of  Battles— Jacob's 
Pillow — ^The  Reilig  Orain — The  Nunnery— Massacre  of  the  Monks— The 
Ruins— The  Inn— Jackdaws — Hill  of  Dunii — Druidic  Circle— The  Bay  of 
the  Boat — Pagan  Baptism. 

AnONO  the  very  varied  phases  of  ecclesiastical  life,  which  we  find 
in  various  comers  of  the  earth,  there  is  one  which  seems  to  me  to 
be  especially  attractive,  wherever  found — from  a  romantic  and 
picturesque  point  of  view.  I  allude  to  those  Holy  Isles  which 
representatives  of  divers  creeds,  in  widely>distant  countries,  have 
selected  as  their  homes — the  centres  from  which  to  spread  their 
particular  form  of  religious  teaching. 

Such  are  the  sacred  isles  of  the  Buddhists,  both  of  China  and 
Japan — the  Isle  of  Putoo,  with  its  thousand  quaint  temples  and 
monasteries,  and  innumerable  throng  of  yellow  or  lilac-robed 
monks  and  priests,  arrayed  in  vestments  as  elaborate  as  is  the 
ritual  they  celebrate.  Such  too  is  the  fascinating  Holy  Isle  of 
Enoahima,  to  which  all  good  Japanese  make  devout  pilgrimage 
as  often  as  they  can  allow  themselves  so  pleasant  a  holiday.  It 
is  a  most  lovely  spot,  where  all  is  pretty,  and  bright,  and  externally 
fascinating. 


THE   BLESSED  ISLE.  57 

Very  different  is  the  charm  which  attaches  to  the  Holy  Isles  of 
our  own  grey  shores, — deeper  seated,  we  would  fain  believe, — but 
by  no  means  so  apparent  on  the  surface.  Northumbria  claims  as 
her  own,  the  Holy  Isle  of  Lindisfame,  for  ever  hallowed  by  the 
presence  of  St.  Cuthbert, — ^the  beads  of  whose  rosary,  multiplying 
miraculously,  still  strew  the  storm-swept  shores.' 

Celebrated  as  was  the  Holy  Isle  of  the  East  Coast,  that  of  the 
West  was  still  more  famous,  and  I  need  hardly  say  that  one  of  our 
chief  objects  in  visiting  the  Hebrides  was  to  make  our  pilgrimage 
from  Oban  to  lona,  that  little  lonely  isle  round  which  such  count- 
less memories  have  clustered  from  all  ages ;  once  the  Holy  Isle  of 
the  Druids,  and  held  most  sacred  by  our  Pagan  forefathers,  and  in 
later  ages,  that  is  to  say,  some  thirteen  hundred  years  ago,  so  hal- 
lowed by  the  burning  and  shining  light  of  that  most  energetic  of 
saints, — Columba, — that  all  races  of  northern  Europe  made  pil- 
grimage thither,  in  constant  succession. 

Though  best  known  to  us  as  lona,  the  Island  is  spoken  of  in  all 
the  oldest  Irish  annals  simply  as  I  or  Hii,  la,  lo,  Hy,  Y  or  Yi — 
with  that  remarkably  varied  speUing,  so  characteristic  of  old  manu- 
scripts,—a  title  denoting  The  Isle  par  excellence.  Sometimes  it 
was  called  Ithona,  the  Isle  of  the  Waves,  and  sometimes  Ishona,  the 
Blessed  Isle. 

What  attraction  it  can  have  offered,  to  induce  the  priests  of  the 
San  to  select  it  as  their  abode,  it  is  hard  to  imagine,  but,  from  time 
immemorial,  it  was  known  as  the  Sacred  Isle  of  the  Druids — the 
Inia  Druineach  or  !Nan  Druihean,  ^  the  Druid's  Isle,"  by  which  name 
It  is  known  to  the  Highlanders  of  the  present  day.  The  Sons  of  Erin 
also  retained  the  old  name,  and  long  after  St.  Columba's  time,  they 
still  spoke  of  the  Holy  Isle  as  the  Eilean  Drunish. 

It  certainly  is  a  strangely  perplexing  mystery,  to  find  an  in- 
significant little  island,  in  this  remote  comer  of  the  earth,  exalted 
to  a  position  of  such  extraordinary  honour, — an  island  situated  in  a 

^  St  Cuthbert's  beads.  Single  joints  of  the  encrinite  or  stone-Iily,  Tvashed 
from  the  fossiliferous  rocks  by  the  action  of  the  waves.  These  sections  are 
star-shaped,  cruciform,  or  circular,  and  being  naturally  perforated,  were  highly 
prized,  and  strung  as  pilgrims'  rosaries. 


58  IN   THE  HEBRIDES. 

region  where  the  skies  are  proverbially  grey — where  rain  and  mist 
by  turns  enfold  the  land,  and  where,  for  weeks  in  succession,  the 
great  Sun  does  not  vouchsafe  one  unclouded  ray  to  gladden  his 
most  devout  worshippers. 

One  can  understand  that  zealous  priests  of  the  Sun-God  should 
make  their  way  to  the  mainland  of  Britain,  afi  missionaries  of  every 
manner  of  creed,  are  content  to  devote  their  lives  to  the  spread  of 
the  faith  they  hold  true,  no  matter  how  uninviting  their  surround- 
ings (and  we  cannot  suppose  that  the  white-robed  Druid  priests 
found  our  ancestors  in  their  very  cool  full-dress  of  blue-wode, 
with  the  possible  addition  of  a  wolf-skin,  altogether  congenial 
companions !). 

Whatever  we  know  Df  these  Druid  teachers,  seems  to  suggest 
their  having  been  of  Eastern  origin,  notwithstanding  Csesar's  state- 
ment that  they  were  supposed  to  be  an  indigenous  product  of 
Britain,  and  that  persons  wishing  to  study  their  tenets  generally 
went  from  Gaul  to  Britain  for  that  purpose.  We  are  told  that 
they  derived  their  name  from  the  oak-groves  in  which  they 
taught  the  people  to  worship.^  Yet  the  golden  knives  with  which 
they  cut  the  sacred  mistletoe  were  assuredly  not  indigenous,  nor 
was  the  familiar  use  of  the  Greek  alphabet,  in  which  they  recorded 
all  public  and  private  affairs,  save  such  as  related  to  their  religion 
(ibr  these  they  deemed  it  unhallowed  to  commit  to  writing) — a 
religion  which  emphatically  taught  the  doctrines  of  immortality 
and  of  the  transmigration  of  souls. 

Surely  the  mere  existence  on  these  cold  grey  shores  of  a  white- 
robed  priesthood,  crowned  with  garlands  of  oak-leaves,  who  min- 
istered barefooted  in  unroofed  temples  open  to  every  storm  of 
heaven — astrologers,  familiar  with  all  the  mysteries  of  the  starry 
heavens — ^magicians  who  worked  miracles  by  the  use  of  magic 
crystals,  and  whose  most  potent  talismans  were  ring-shaped 
''  adder's  stones  "  supposed  to  be  formed  of  the  crystallized  saliva  of 
serpents ; — surely  all  these  things  bespeak  the  traditions  of  men  who 
had  originally  wandered  to  Britain  from  some  warmer,  sunnier  clime. 

# 

^  The  name  uf  Derwydd^  a  Druid,  is  said  to  be  derived  from  derw,  which 
in  Celtic  (Welsh)  signifies  an  oak-tree. 


THE  ISLES  OF  BRIDGIT.  59 

We  may  gather  a  hint  to  the  same  effect,  from  the  symbols  which 
we  find  sculptured  on  some  ancient  memorial  stones  of  Pagan 
Britain.  Not  only  do  we  find  elaborately-carved  crescents,  discs, 
double  wheels,  linked  together  by  a  royal  sceptre,  such  as  might 
naturally  suggest  themselves  as  emblems  of  the  sun,  but  we  also 
find  Fish,  Geese,  Serpents,  and  highly  idealized  Elephants  and 
Camels,^  the  three  last-named  being  creatures  which  would  scarcely 
have  presented  themselves  to  the  minds  of  our  ancestors  had  not 
aome  tradition  of  these  creatures  reached  them  from  the  eastern 
world.  It  is,  therefore,  very  remarkable  to  find  that  the  Elephant, 
the  Crescent,  the  Serpent,  and  the  Goose,  are  sacred  symbols,  of 
very  frequent  recurrence  on  the  sculptured  stones  of  Ceylon,  where 
a  planetary  worship  (strangely  similar  to  that  which  seems  to  have 
been  the  ancient  religion  of  Britain)  has  prevailed  from  time 
uumemoriaL 

So  very  little  is  positively  known  concerning  the  Druids  that  it 
is  rather  by  inference,  and  by  noting  such  traces  of  their  teaching 
as  long  survived  in  those  Isles,  that  we  gather  even  a  vague,  shadowy 
image  of  the  wise  men  and  their  tenets.  Only  from  some  slight 
allnjsions  in  the  classics,  and  from  the  somewhat  apocryphal  old 
Celtic  chronicles,  do  we  gather  something  of  their  mythology,  and 
of  the  names  and  attributes  of  their  deities. 

One  of  these  was  the  goddess  Brighit,  to  whose  special  care  were 
committed  all  the  Hebrides  or  Ey-Brides,  that  is  The  Isles  of 
Brighit  or  Bridgit.  To  her,  in  her  Christianized  form,  are  also 
dedicated  six  parishes  on  the  mainland  of  Scotland,  while  the  name 
of  Kilbride,  the  Cell  of  Bridget,  occurs  eighteen  times,  and  the  name 
also  appears  as  Fan-Bride  and  Llan-Bride  (in  Morayshire).  The 
latter  name  tells  its  own  story  of  the  dubious  saint,  Llan  being 
simply  the  sacred  grove  of  the  Druids,  hence  Llan-Bride  is  the 
grove  of  Brighit,  the  Celtic  goddess.  Her  temples  were  attended 
by  virgins  of  noble  birth,  called  the  daughters  of'  fire,  or  sometimes 
merely  Breochuidh,  the  fire-keepers.  Like  the  ancient  Persians, 
they  fed  this  fire  only  with  one  kind  of  peeled  wood,  and  might 
never  breathe  upon  the  sacred  flame.     The  ancient  Irish  are  said  to 

^  The  camel  is  carved  on  the  old  cross  on  the  Isle  of  Canna. 


60  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

have  80  greatly  reverenced  all  fire  that  they  would  not  even  put  out 
a  candle  without  uttering  a  prayer  that  the  Lord  would  renew  to 
them  light  from  heaven. 

When  Cliristianity  began  to  make  its  difficult  way  in  these  isles, 
it  was  so  impossible  to  wean  these  vestal  virgins  from  their  post, 
that  it  was  found  simpler  to  institute  a  Christian  Order  of  Nuns  of 
St.  Bridgit.  To  one  of  St.  Patrick's  converts  was  assigned  this 
delicate  work  of -adapting  things  old  to  new  meanings.  St.  Bridgit 
accordingly  took  up  her  abode  in  the  grove  of  sacred  oaks,  where 
the  people  were  accustomed  to  worship  the  goddess,  and  here  she 
instructed  them  in  the  new  faith.  The  vestal  virgins  were  thus 
transformed  into  the  first  Christian  community  of  religious  women, 
and  the  temple  of  Bridgit  at  Kildare,  became  a  great  convent. 

To  these  Christian  nuns  was  entrusted  the  care  of  the  sacred  fire, 
which  from  time  immemorial  had  been  kept  burning  in  honour  of 
the  Celtic  goddess.  When,  on  the  Eve  of  Good  Friday,  all  other 
churches  and  convents  extinguished  their  fire,  not  relighting  it  till 
Easter  Eve,  the  nuns  of  St.  Bridgit  always  kept  theirs  steadily 
burning,  a  practice  which  Giraldus  Cambrensis  says  he  knows  not 
whether  to  attribute  to  a  desire  to  have  warmth  and  food  always 
ready  to  bestow  on  all  pilgrims  and  poor  people,  or  whether  it  was 
done  in  obedience  to  the  Levitical  command  that  the  fire  should  be 
ever  burning  on  the  altar,  and  never  go  out 

Thus  the  fire  of  Bridgit  was  kept  perpetually  burning,  till  the 
year  1220,  when  it  was  extinguished  by  order  of  the  Archbishop 
of  Dublin  to  avoid  superstition  and  scandal  So  great,  however, 
was  the  veneration  in  which  it  was  held  by  the  people,  that  it  was 
speedily  rekindled,  and  was  kept  burning  steadily  until  the  mon- 
astery was  suppressed  in  the  time  of  Henry  VIII.  The  ruins  of 
the  Fire  House  are  still,  or  were  till  recently,  to  be  seen. 

This  is  all  that  I  can  gather  concerning  the  protecting  goddess  of 
the  Hebrides,  whose  worship,  as  also  that  of  Baal  the  Sun-god, 
and  Neitlie  the  goddess  of  Wells,  was  so  deeply  rooted  throughout 
the  British  Isles,  that  even  now,  traces  of  the  old  superstitions 
survive,  and  occasionally  crop  up,  to  the  disgust  of  the  schoolmaster, 
and  the  delight  of  the  antiquarian. 


OFFERINGS  TO  THE  EARTH-SPIRITS.  61 

Even  on  lona  itself,  which  became  so  emphatically  the  centre  of 
Qinstian  teaching,  many  long  years  elapsed  ere  all  traces  of  the 
ancient  faith  were  swept  away.  Even  in  the  last  century,  Pennant  ^ 
was  told  by  Bishop  Pocock,  that  on  the  Eve  of  St.  Michael,  the 
islanders  brought  all  their  horses  to  a  small  green  hillock,  whereon 
stood  a  circle  of  stones,  surrounding  a  cairn.  Bound  this  hill,  they 
cU  made  the  turn  simunse,  thus  unwittingly  dedicating  their  horses  to 
the  son.  The  Bishop  also  spoke  of  a  remarkable  cromlech,  consisting 
of  two  stones  seven  feet  in  height,  with  a  third  laid  across  them. 

Another  old  legend  of  the  Isle,  quoted  by  several  writers  of  the 
last  century,^  tells  of  a  circular  Druidic  temple  which  has  now 
disappeared  (at  least,  we  failed  to  find  it).  It  consists  of  twelve 
great  stones,  beneath  each  of  which  a  human  victim  was  buried. 
That  this  may  have  been  the  case  is  probable,  as  Sir  Walter  Scott 
has  told  us  that  the  Picts  thus  bathed  the  foundation  of  their 
strong  buildings  in  blood,  as  a  propitiation  to  the  spirits  of  the 
earth,  and  that  sometimes  a  human  body  was  thus  buried  beneath 
the  foundation  stone;  sometimes  only  that  of  an  animal.  The 
Welsh  too,  in  building  their  strong  forts,  found  it  necessary  thus  to 
appease  the  earth-spirits,  otherwise  they  would  demolish  by  night, 
whatever  was  built  during  the  day. 

St.  Columba  himself  has,  very  unfairly,  been  credited  with 
another  legend,  which  assuredly  belongs  to  pre-Christian  times. 
It  is  said  that  when  he  and  his  followers  commenced  building  their 
chapel  (the  first  Christian  Church  on  the  Druid  Isle)  the  power  of 
the  evil  spirit  so  prevailed,  that  the  walls  were  overthrown  as  fast 
as  they  were  raised.  Then  it  was  revealed  to  the  perplexed  saint, 
that  a  compromise  must  be  made,  and  one  last  sacrifice  offered  to 
the  powers  of  eviL  Oran  having  generously  devoted  his  own  life  to 
the  good  cause  was  interred  alive,  and  remained  three  days  in  the 
grave.     On  the  third  day,  St.  Columba,  wishing  for  one  last  look 

1  Pennant,  Id  common  with  our  older  archaeologists,  here  used  the  word 
cromlech,  which,  however,  is  now  rather  applied  to  circles  of  standing  stones 
(Celtic,  erom,  a  circle ;  lech,  a  stone)— these  trilithons  being  more  ^>propri- 
alely  called  dolmens  (Celtic,  daul^  a  table ;  mam,  a  stone). 

*  Ledwich,  Fosbrook,  and  Higgios. 


62  IK  THE  HEBRIDES. 

at  his  friend,  caused  the  earth  and  stones  to  be  removed,  when,  to 
the  amazement  of  all,  Oran  sat  up,  and  spake,  revealing  strange 
stories  of  the  border  land,  more  especially  that  the  doctrine  of  Hell, 
as  commonly  understood,  was  a  mere  fiction  of  priestcraft,  having 
no  real  existence.  St.  Columba  having  a  firm  faith  in  the  Eternity 
of  Evil,  could  by  no  means  suflTer  such  revelations  to  proceed,  so  he 
ordered  the  earth  to  bo  thrown  in  again,  and  the  voice  from  th6 
tomb  was  silenced.  You  see  he  lived  in  the  Dark  Ages,  before  the 
Spirit  of  Enquiry  was  fully  awakened. 

Certain  it  is  that  the  little  church  which  was  rebuilt  on  the  ver) 
site  of  this  original  chapel,  and  is  the  oldest  Christian  building  on 
the  Isle,  is  dedicated  to  the  Saint,  who  is  said  to  have  here  endured 
this  voluntary  martyrdom.^ 

At  first  sight  it  appears  somewhat  strange  that  the  long  occupa- 
tion of  the  Isle  by  the  Druids,  should  have  left  so  little  mark, 
whereas  on  the  far  less  noted  Isle  of  Lewis,  there  still  remain  such 
very  remarkable  Druidic  remains  as  those  at  Callemish  or  Loch 
Bemera,  where  various  monolithic  circles,  avenues,  and  a  semi-circle, 
I'emain  to  puzzle  autiquarian&  There  are  tumuli,  and  menhirs,  one 
of  tne  latter  being  twenty  feet  high,  and  broad  in  proportion. 
Most  of  the  stones,  however,  only  average  four  feet  in  height. 

The  most  remarkable  feature  in  the  Callernish  stones  is  a  circle, 
sixty -three  feet  in  diameter,  formed  by  twelve  stones,  with  a  large 
central  obelisk.  It  is  supposed  that  this  circle  represented  the  sun, 
and  that  the  twelve  stones  were  the  twelve  signs  of  the  Zodiac. 
From  this  circle  four  lines  of  upright  stones  extend  towards  the 
four  points  of  the  compass.  One  of  these  lines  is  double,  and, 
moreover,  twice  the  length  of  the  other  three ;  thus  producing  the 
form  of  the  Christian  cross.  Within  the  circle  are  two  small 
chambers  built  of  stone. 

We  have  seen  that  a  similar  Sun-temple,  «.  e.  a  circle  formed  by 
twelve  great  stones,  remained  in  lona  till  the  eighteenth  century, 
and  we  may  well  believe  that  when  the  island  passed  into  the 

*  In  Borneo,  and  in  various  groups  of  South  Pacific  Isles,  it  waf»,  till  very 
recently,  customary  thus  to  bury  victims  beside  each  post  of  the  chief's  house, 
or  of  a  new  temple. 


THE  360  GBEAT   STONES.  63 

hands  of  teachers  of  another  creed,  many  of  the  ancient  monuments 
were  qaicklj  tamed  to  account  in  building  and  in  other  ways. 

But  the  most  remarkable  adaptation  of  old  objects  of  reverence 
by  the  new-comers,  was  that  which  appears  to  me  to  account 
beyond  doubt,  for  the  existence  on  this  tiny  isle  of  no  loss  than 
360  senlpiwed  stone  crosses,  which  remained  till  a.d.  1560,  when, 
by  the  bigotry  of  the  Protestant  Synod  of  Argylo,  they  were 
pronounced  to  be  '*  monuments  of  idolatrie,"  and  the  fiat  went 
forth,  that  all  should  be  cast  into  the  sea.  Some,  however,  were 
happily  rescued  and  taken  to  old  churchyards  and  market-places 
in  the  neighbouring  isles,  or  on  the  mainland.  They  were  all  very 
similar,  being  tall  monoliths,  generally  of  whinstone  (a  hard  grey 
stone,  which  is  little  affected  by  the  rains  and  frosts  of  centuries), 
and  covered  with  intricate  designs.  Some  were  very  elaborate 
round-headed  crosses ;  on  others,  the  round-headed  cross  was 
simply  carved  on  the  slab. 

Now  it  is  exceedingly  improbable  that  the  missionary  brethren  of 
lona  would  have  expended  their  energies  on  quarrying  360  great 
blocks  of  whinstone,  in  order  to  carve  such  a  multiplicity  of 
crosses,  without  any  apparent  object.  But  supposing  they  found  the 
360  monoliths  already  erected,  and  receiving  idolatrous  worship 
from  the  people,  nothing  could  have  been  more  in  accordance  with 
the  ordinary  practice  of  those  days,  than  to  transform  these  menhirs 
into  crosses,  thereby  turning  these  memorials  of  a  heathen  worship 
to  Christian  uses. 

We  know  that  in  all  parts  of  the  kingdom,  these  sacred  stones 
were  (by  order  of  Pope  Gregory,  a.d.  601),  sprinkled  with  holy 
water ;  and  thus  sanctified,  while  the  people  were  still  permitted 
to  offer  sacrifices  of  blood,  according  to  their  old  customs.  The 
edict  declares  that,  as  it  is  impossible  to  efface  old  customs  from 
the  obdurate  minds  of  the  Britons,  they  may  on  great  festivals 
continue  to  build  themselves  booths  and  huts  with  boughs  of  trees, 
round  about  such  old  Pagan  temples  as  have  been  sanctified  by  the 
sprinkling  of  holy  water,  and  may  there  continue  to  sacrifice  and 
feast  on  the  flesh  of  cattle. 

Thus  in  speaking  of  the  first  dawn  of  Christianity  in  Armorica, 


64  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

Souvestre  says,  "  On  lui  haptlsa  sea  idoles,  pour  qu^dle  put  eon- 
tinuer  a  les  adorer.  Ce  fut  ainsi  que,  ne  pouvanf  deraciner  lea 
Menhirftf  on  lea  fit  Chretiens,  en  lea  aurmontant  d'une  Croix,  ainsi 
que  Von  subafitua  leafeux  de  Saint  Jean  d  ceux  qui  a*alJumaient  en 
Vhonneur  du  aoleiV*  Thus  the  people  might  continue  to  oflfer 
sacrifice  to  the  gods  of  their  fathers,  while  bearing  the  name  of 
Christians  ! 

In  Ireland  too,  Borlase  has  told  us  how  Crosses  were  carved  on 
old  Druidic  monuments,  that  the  people  who  could  not  give  up 
their  superstitious  reverence  for  these  stones,  might  henceforth  pay 
them  a  sort  of  justifiable  adoration,  as  Christian  memorials  ! 
Doubtless  the  same  history  belongs  to  those  tall  monoliths,  sur- 
mounted by  a  roughly  hewn  Cross  and  Circle,  which  stand  by 
themselves,  on  the  barren  heaths  of  Cornwall,  with  no  trace  of 
human  work  near,  except  the  ancient  Celtic  barrows,  and  grey 
weather-beaten  Druidic  stones. 

So  also,  in  Scotland,  we  still  find  great  menhirs,  such  as  those 
at  Meigle  and  Aberlemnie,  where  the  Cross  appears  in  combination 
with  many  Pagan  emblems ;  serpents,  large  fish,  centaur,  mirror 
and   comb,^  and   sun-circles; — or  that  at  Deir  in  Aberdeenshire, 

>  The  appearance  of  The  Comb  among  the  sacred  emblems  is  puzzling.  But 
far  more  so  is  it,  to  he  ohliged  to  infer  that  it  was  one  of  the  ohjects  of  Pagan 
veneration,  which  the  early  Christian  teachers  deemed  it  expedient  to  adopt, 
giving  it  a  new  meaning.  What  that  symbolism  may  have  been,  we  fail  to 
learn.  We  only  know  that  the  comb,  formerly  used  in  divination  and  referred 
to  in  many  old  legends,  did  in  Christian  days,  acquire  some  such  strange 
sanctity,  that  we  find  it  mentioned  among  the  appliances  once  needed  at 
solemn  High  Mass,  more  especially  when  sung  by  a  Bishop,  in  which  case  a 
comb  was  always  essential.  Sometimes  it  was  made  of  ivory ;  sometimes 
quite  plain ;  some  were  adorned  with  elaborate  carving,  and  even  gemmed 
with  previous  stones!  Both  in  English  and  foreign  cathedrals  they  were 
reckoned  as  ecclesiastical  furniture,  and  numbered  among  the  costly  posses- 
sions of  the  Church 

A  list  of  many  such  ritual  combs  is  given  by  Dr.  Rock,^  as  having  belonged 
to  St.  Cuthbert,  St  Neot,  St.  Dunstan,  Malachias,  and  other  saints.  Various 
other  combs  were  long  preserved  at  Durham,  Canterbury,  Glastonbury,  and 
other  holy  minsters.    At  Thetford,  in  the  church  of  St  Sepulchre,  you  may 

^  *  The  Church  of  our  Fathers.'    By  Mr.  Daniel  Rock. 


TOMB'TEMPLES  OF  MANY  LANDS.  &5 

engraven  on  one  side  with  a  rude  Cross,  but  on  the  other  with  the 
circle,  crescent,  or  double-wheel,  crossed  by  a  royal  sceptre,  emblem- 
atic of  the  worship  of  sun,  moon,  and  planets.  Even  on  the 
more  advanced  round-headed  Cross  we  find  the  same  strange 
mixture  of  Christian  and  Pagan  emblems,  commemorating  both 
faiths,  and  blending  them  in  the  minds  of  the  worshippers  in  a 
manner  as  intricate  as  is  the  intertwining  of  the  Eunic  knots,  which 
so  mysteriously  interlace  the  whole. 

To  judge  of  the  full  significance  of  the  number  of  the  360  stone 
crosses  of  lona,  it  is  necessary  to  compare  them  with  the  traces  of 
ancient  worship  of  the  same  character  in  other  lands,  so,  without 
pausing  at  Stonehenge  or  Camac,  or  other  noted  spots  in  Britain  or 
Brittany,  we  may  glance  at  Northern  Africa,  where,  near  Carthage, 
the  circle  and  crescent  are  found  carved  as  emblems  of  sun  and 
moon,  just  as  on  the  British  monuments. 

Algeria  has  been  discovered  to  abound  in  every  known  form  of 
rude  stone  monument.  At  Eoknia  three  thousand  monoliths  are 
grouped  together,  as  if  in  a  vast  city  of  the  dead,  while  near 
Constantiue,  and  in  the  district  around  S^tif,  their  number 
has  been  calculated  at  ten  thousand,  including  some  stones  so 
gigantic,  that  one  is  described  as  fifty-two  feet  high  and  twenty- 
six  in  diameter  at  the  base ;  while  we  hear  of  a  dolmen  near  Tiaret, 
the  cap>8tone  of  which  is  sixty-five  feet  long,  by  twenty-six  feet 
broad,  and  upwards  of  nine  feet  thick — a  rock-mass,  which  is 
poised  on  boulders  of  thirty  to  forty  feet  high.^ 

Tripoli  likewise  possesses  many  of  these  mysterious  remains; 
more  especially  certain  groups  of  three  great  stones,  so  placed  as 

stfll  see  the  comb  of  St.  Thomas,  the  martyr  of  Canterbury,  and  at  Durham 
that  of  St  Cuthbert,  which  was  fomid  inside  his  cofiin.  Certainly  if  history 
qteaks  truly  oonceraing  these  holy  men,  their  combs  were  in  no  danger  of 
wearing  out  from  overmuch  use  I 

We  find,  however,  that  combing  the  hair  of  the  priest  or  bishop  was  one  of 
the  offices  performed  by  the  inferior  clergy  not  only  once,  in  the  vestry— but 
several  times  during  Divine  Service !  Surely  the  custom  of  hair-dressing  at 
the  Christian  altar  could  never  have  been  of  indigenous  growth,  but  must 
rather  have  sprung  from  some  old  pagan  rite  of  unknown  import. 

^  '  Biu)e  Stone  Monuments.'  Feigusson. 


66  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

to  form  high,  narrow  doorways ;  so  narrow,  however,  is  the  space 
between  the  upright  stones,  that  a  man  of  average  size  can  hardly 
squeeze  his  way  through  between  them ; — truly  "  strait  and  narrow 
gateways." 

The  discovery  of  these  African  monuments  is  the  more  curious, 
as  suggesting  that  some  forgotten  tradition  may  have  inspired  old 
Geoffrey  of  Monmouth's  assertion,  that  ^*  giants  in  old  days  brought 
from  Africa  the  stones  which  the  magic  art  of  Merlin  afterwards 
removed  from  Kildare,  and  set  up  at  Stonehenge."  The  latter,  you 
will  remember,  is  the  only  place  in  Britain  where  these  trilithons 
exist,  though  the  ordinary  dolmen  is  so  common  in  Cornwall  and 
elsewhere.  They  have,  however,  been  discovered  in  various 
countries,  and  I  have  myself  seen  in  one  of  the  Friendly  Isles,  a 
very  remarkable  cyclopean  trilithon,  concerning  which  the  present 
race  have  no  tradition.  It  differs  from  all  others,  in  that  the  great 
stones  are  hewn,  and  the  cap-stone  is  let  into  the  two  uprights,  and 
this  in  a  country  to  whose  people  no  metal  is  known,  and  whose 
only  buildings  are  of  reeds  and  timber.^  In  fact  the  huge  stones 
must  have  been  quarried,  and  carried  from  afar. 

To  pass  onward  to  Hindostan.  In  Malabar  wo  find  dolmens  con- 
sisting of  one  huge  stone  poised  on  two  upright  ones,  differing  only 
in  size  from  one  which  Bishop  Pocock  saw  in  lona.  There  is  not 
one  form  of  cyclopean  monument  known  in  the  British  Isles,  or  in 
France,  which  does  not  also  exist  both  in  Northern  and  Southern 
India,  either  for  worship  or  for  sepulture ;  oblongs,  circles,  parallel 
lines,  and  many  little  circles  within  one  large  circle. 

In  -  Northern  India,  the  place  accounted  most  holy  by  the  sun- 
worshipping  Santhals  (the  noblest  of  the  primitive  races),  is  at 
Byjnatb  in  Bengal,  near  three  huge  monoliths  of  gneiss  rock.  Two 
of  these  are  vertical  The  third  lies  horizontally  across  the 
uprights. 

In  the  Xassia  hills  near  Assam,  monuments  of  this  class, 
sometimes  accompanied  by  gigantic  monoliths,  are  erected  in  the 
present  day,  by  one  at  least  of  the  wild  aboriginal  tribes,  as  places 

^  I  have  given  a  photo^ph  of  this  veiy  mysterious  object  in  '  A  Lady's 
Clause  in  a  French  man-of-war.'    Blackwood  and  Sons. 


MODERN  MONOLITHIO  TEMPLES.  67 

of  sepulture.  In  this  case  the  monoliths  are  erected  in  honour  of 
the  dead,  whose  spirits  are  invoked  in  cases  of  sickness  or  trouble. 

The  close  analogy  between  these  modem  dolmens  and  monoliths 
of  the  East,  with  ancient  remains  elsewhere,  has  led  to  the  some- 
what rash  conclusion,  that  all  our  so-called  Druidic  temples  were, 
like  the  tumuli,  simply  places  of  sepulture,  or  commemorative  of 
the  dead,  or  of  some  great  event.  Considering  the  well-known 
tendency  to  ancestor- worship  which  from  all  ages  has  pervaded  all 
nations,  no  inference  can  be  more  natural  than  that  the  places  of 
sepulture  should  become  places  of  worship.  Moreover,  why  a  similar 
analogy  in  favour  of  the  temple  theory ^  may  not  he  drawn  from  the 
circles  of  Bombay,  which  are  undoubtedly  places  of  worship,  it  is 
hard  to  say. 

The  circles  to  which  I  allude  are  to  be  found  at  various  villages 
in  the  Presidency  of  Bombay,  notably  near  Poonah,  where  the 
people  continue  to  erect  great  stone  circles  near  the  Brahmin 
temples,  and  there  offer  sacrifice,  every  man  for  himself  in  defiance 
of  the  Hindoo  priests,  who  vainly  strive  to  put  down  a  form  of 
superstition  which  requires  no  priestly  intervention. 

The  worshippers  at  these  shrines  are  descendants  of  the  primitive 
inhabitants  of  India,  who  held  the  land  long  before  the  Aryan 
conquerors  had  found  their  way,  either  to  Britain  or  to  Hindostan. 
Just  as  in  Scotland  the  people  continued  obstinately  for  many 
centuries  to  sacrifice  red  cocks,  and  occasionally  goats,  to  demons,  in 
defiance  of  all  the  threats  and  persuasions  of  Christian  teachers,  so 
do  these  Indian  tribes  persist  in  the  sacrifice  of  red  cocks  and  goats 
to  Betal,  whose  worship  has  for  centuries  been  condemned  by  the 
Brahmins  as  being  devil-worship,  but  which  has  still  been  kept  up 
sub  rosoy  and  now  that  religious  toleration  has  been  secured,  the 
people  are  returning  to  their  first  love,  and  demon-worship  is 
regaining  the  ascendancy. 

The  worship  of  Betal  is  wide-spread,  extending  to  Guzerat  and 
Cutch.  (Fanciful  as  must  be  such  a  connection  of  ideas,  his  name  is 
certainly  suggestive  of  that  temple  of  Botallick  in  Cornwall,  where 
a  stone  circle  still  exists,  precisely  like  these  at  Poonah,  having  three 

principal  stones  placed  facing  the  east,  and  one  piaced  quite  outside 

r  2 


68  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

ths  circle.)  Those  at  Poonah  are  painted  white,  having  a  great  daub 
of  red  paint,  with  a  darker  spot  in  the  middle,  dashed  on  the  upper 
end  of  each  stone,  to  represent  the  blood  of  the  sacrifices.  This 
red  spot  invariably  faces  the  rising  sun. 

Passing  from  Hindostan  to  Persia,  the  chosjBn  home  of  the 
symbolic  worship  of  Sun  and  Fire,  we  there  find  many  circles  of 
great  stones,  some  of  which  must  have  been  carried  from  long 
distances.  There  are  also  tall  monoliths  which  the  people  reverence 
as  having  been  the  sacred  stones  of  ancient  Fire  Temples. 

Crossing  the  Persian  Gulf,  we  enter  Arabia.  There  Palgrave 
discovered  tall  trilithons  in  connection  with  circles  of  great 
monoliths,  and  placed,  as  at  Stonehenge,  facing  the  north-east. 

I  have  thus  glanced  at  the  rude  stone  monuments  of  so  many 
countries  in  which  planetary  worship  has  held  sway,  in  order  to 
show  that  there  is  nothing  very  improbable  in  tracing  a  startling 
resemblance  between  objects  of  veneration  in  the  Holy  Isle  of  the 
Hebrides  and  those  which  were  held  in  deepest  reverence  in  Arabia 
for  countless  generations  before  Mahomet  arose  to  overthrow  idolatry 
and  divert  the  worship  of  the  people  into  a  new  channel. 

The  Kaaba  at  Mecca  (which  to  all  good  Mahomedans  is  as  sacred 
as  was  the  Holy  of  Holies  to  the  Israelite)  had,  from  time  imme- 
morial, been  accounted  by  all  the  people  of  Arabia,  to  be  the  very 
portal  of  Heaven.  Until  the  time  of  Mahomet,  it  was  surrounded 
by  360  rude  unsculptured  monolithSf  which,  to  the  degenerate 
Arabs,  had  become  objects  of  actual  worship,  and  in  presence  of 
which,  they  were  wont  to  sacrifice  red  cocks  to  the  sun  (just  as  the 
people  in  these  Western  Isles  have  continued  to  do,  almost  to  the 
present  day,  though  of  course  in  ignorance  of  the  original  meaning 
of  this  ancestral  custom). 

More  unflinching  than  the  Christian  reformers  of  lona,  Mahomet 
would  admit  of  no  compromise.  Like  the  Synod  of  Argyle,  he 
resolved  on  the  destruction  of  these  ''  monuments  of  idolatrie,"  and 
so  bis  iconoclastic  followers  did  his  bidding,  and  destroyed  them 
utterly. 

Nevertheless,  he  still  allowed  his  converts  to  retain  their  custom 
of  walking  seven  times  in  procession,  Deisul,  ue.  Sunwise,  round  the 


THE  360  MONOLITHS  AT  MECCA*  69 

Kaaba  itself^  in  reyerence  for  Abraham  and  Ishmael,  who  had  re* 
built  it  after  the  deluge. 

Like  all  the  most  sacred  shrines  of  primitive  worship,  it  is  a 
tiny  sanctum,  measuring  only  eighteen  paces  in  length,  by  fourteen 
in  width ;  and  though  the  /aithfol  have  overlaid  its  doors  with 
silver,  and  year  by  year  cover  it  with  new  silken  hangings,  its  very 
essence  lies  in  its  simplicity. 

For  the  original  Kaaba  was  a  tabernacle  of  radiant  clouds,  which 
came  down  from  heaven  in  answer  to  the  prayer  of  Adam,  who 
besought  the  restoration  of  that  shrine  where  he  had  been  wont  to 
worship  in  Paradise,  and  around  which  he  had  so  often  seen  the 
angels  move  in  adoring  procession.  When,  therefore,  the  cloud 
temple  was  restored  to  him,  he  daily  walked  round  it  seven  times 
suntoisey  in  imitation  of  the  angels. 

On  the  death  of  Adam,  this  tabernacle  returned  to  heaven,  but 
one  resembling  its  tent-like  form,  was  built  by  Seth :  being  destroyed 
by  the  Deluge,  it  was  subsequently  rebuilt  by  Abraham,  to  whom  the 
Angel  Gabriel  brought  a  precious  black  stone  from  Paradise,  to  be 
inserted  in  a  comer  of  the  outer  wall,  and  adored  and  reverently 
kissed  by  the  faithful  This  stone  is  a  meteoric  stone  of  oval  form, 
and  is  described  as  a  fragment  of  reddish  black  volcanic  basalt 
sprinkled  with  coloured  crystals.  Its  dimensions  are  six  by  eight 
inches.  It  is  encircled  by  a  silver  band,  and  is  built  into  the  wall 
at  about  four  feet  from  the  ground,  and  has  attained  a  high  polish 
from  the  lips  and  impressive  kisses  of  ten  thousand  times  ten 
thousand  worshippers. 

Strange  to  say,  long  before  Mahomet's  public  career  had  com- 
menced, ho  was  chosen  by  the  people  as  the  most  fit  person  to  lift 
this  sacred  stone  into  its  place  as  Chief  Comer  Stone  of  the  outer 
wall,  when  the  Kaaba  had  undergone  some  necessary  repairs. 
Being  thus  a  standing  proof  of  the  honour  in  which  he  himself  had 
been  held,  Mahomet  could  not  find  it  in  his  heart  to  destroy  this 
Heaven-given  aerolite  (probably  even  he,  would  not  have  dared  to 
do  so),  and  as  he  could  not  possibly  induce  the  Arabs  to  abstain 
from  worshipping  it,  he  permitted  them  still  to  do  it  homage, 
and  so,  to  the  present  day,  the  vast  throngs  of  reverent  pilgrims 


70  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

kiss  it  reverently  each  time  they  pass  it,  as  they  make  their  seven 
sunwise  circuits  round  the  shrine. 

Strange  to  say,  this  black  stone  also  had  its  counterpart  in  lona. 
It  was  preserved  in  the  cathedral,  till  the  year  1830,  when  it 
mysteriously  disappeared,  having  probably  been  stolen  by  some 
sacrilegious  relic-coUector.  In  such  reverence  was  it  held,  that  on 
it  solemn  oaths  were  sworn  and  agreements  ratified.  A  similar 
black  stone,  lying  close  to  the  sea,  also  received  worship  in  the 
Hebrides  till  a  comparatively  recent  date.  Sir  Walter  Scott  says 
it  was  supposed  to  be  oracular,  and  to  answer  whatever  questions 
might  be  asked,  by  means  of  the  secret  influence  it  exercised  on  the 
mind  of  the^nquirer.  It  lay  on  the  sea-shore,  and  the  people  never 
approached  it  without  certain  solemnities. 

(Several  such  unhewn  Black  Stones  are  objects  of  reverence  to 
millions  of  our  Indian  fellow-subjects.  In  the  Eajmahal  hills,  such 
an  one  represents  their  chief  deity,  and  receives  sacrifices  of  goats 
and  of  fowls  in  all  'times  of  sickness  or  other  affliction.  Moreover, 
one  of  the  most  sacred  forms  under  which  Juggernaut  is  worshipped 
is  that  of  a  shapeless  black  stone,  unhewn,  with  diamonds  let  in,  as 
eyes.  It  must  be  remembered  that  Juggernaut,  with  his  many- 
wheeled  cars,  rolling  in  solemn  sunwise  procession,  is  held  to  be 
symbolic  of  the  sun.  In  one  of  the  great  courts  of  his  principal 
temple  in  Southern  India  is  another  most  sacred  black  stone, 
brought  by  his  worshippera  from  the  old  temple  at  Kanarak.  This 
is  a  monolith  150  feet  high,  sculptured  to  the  form  of  a  stately 
pillar.  Such  pillars,  we  are  told,  were  common  in  Southern  India 
even  half  a  century  ago,  but  most  of  them  have  been  destroyed  by 
the  ruthless  ravages  of  Mahomedans  and  other  zealots.) 

Apart  from  such  exceptionally  sacred  stones,  as  that  black  stone 

of  lona,  whose  fame  attracted  worshippers  from  afar,  each  village 

in  the  Highlands  is  said  to  have  had  its  rough  unhewn  stone,  called 

the  Gruagach  stone,^  where,  till  very  recent  times,  the  villagers 

^  Gruagach,  ^  The  fair-headed.'  Many  places  onoe  sacred  to  this  goddess  still 
retain  her  name  ;  e.  g.  Greenock,  aluu  Grian-chnoc,  the  knoll  of  the  Sun ; 
Bal-green  or  Baile-greine,  the  town  of  the  Sun  ;  Grenach  or  Grian-achaidh, 
the  field  of  the  Sun  (a  circle  of  Dniidic  stones  in  Perthshire  ;  and  Clach-na- 
greine,  or  the  stone  of  the  Sun,  a  great  Druidic  cairn  on  Isle  Bemera  ;  also 


THE  BLACK  STONES  OF  MECCA,  IS6,  AND  lONA.     71 

ponied  out  libations  of  milk  on  every  day  consecrated  to  Graine  or 
Grian,  the  golden-haired  Celtic  Sun-goddess  (just  as  we  now  see  the 
Hindoos  pour  their  daily  offerings  of  milk,  flowers,  and  water,  on  a 
similar  rough  unhewn  stone,  wherein  their  god  is  supposed  to  be 
present,  and  which  invariably  occupies  a  place  of  honour  in  every 
village).  I  do  not  know  whether  any  of  these  stones  still  remain 
in  The  Isles,  but  we  are  told,  that  not  many  years  ago,  there  was 
scarcely  a  village  in  the  Hebrides  where  the  Gruagach  stone  was 
not  still  held  in  some  sort  of  reverence.^  Even  in  the  last  century, 
libations  of  milk  were  poured  on  these  stones  at  dawn  every  Sunday 
as  a  preliminary  to  Christian  worship  ! 

Now  look  to  Japan,  where  the  National  Eeligion  (Shinto)  is  the 
simplest  form  of  Nature-worship,  and  where  a  mirror  of  highly 
polished  metal,  and  a  ^lobe  of  polished  crystal,  both  symbols  of  the 
Sun-goddess,  are  the  sole  objects  of  veneration  to  be  seen  in  every 
Shinto  temple — ^being  reproductions  of  the  Heaven-bestowed  Mirror 
and  Crystal  Globe  so  devoutly  adored  by  thousands  of  pilgrims, 
who,  year  by  year,  visit  the  sacred  Shrines  of  1b& — the  Mecca  of  the 
Shinto  faith.  These  venerated  shrines  are  the  plainest  possible 
little  tent^haped  buildings  of  unpainted  wood,  even  more  unpre- 
tentious than  the  Kaaba.  They,  too,  are  enclosed  by  an  outer  wall, 
at  one  comer  of  which,  three  feet  from  the  ground,  a  large  dark 
Hone  holds  a  conspicuous  place.  It  is  perfectly  polished  by  the 
constant  friction  of  reverent  hands.  For  he  who  suffers  from  any 
manner  of  pain,  needs  only  to  rub  this  healing  stone,  and  then  rub 
his  own  body,  and  his  cure  is  certain. 

(I  have  not  been  told  by  any  eye-witness  whether  the  seven  sunwise 
turns  round  these  shrines^  form  part  of  the  accustomed  ritual,  but 
there  is  every  probability  they  do  so,  as  I  have  seen  the  DeisiU 
thus  performed  round  many  Japanese  shrines  of  far  less  note.) 

Ben  Grianan  in  Perthshire ;  Bein-na-Grianan  in  Skye  and  also  in  Jura ;  and 
Griaxum  in  the  Isle  of  Arran.  All  these  are  lofty  mountain  summits,  which 
catch  the  first  ray  of  the  risiag  sun. 

^  The  Rev.  Kenneth  Macaulay,  describing  this  ceremony,  says :  *'  There 
was  a  Gruagach  stone  in  ahnost  every  village  in  the  Western  Isles."  Vide 
'  History  of  St  Kilda,'  p.  88.    Pub.  1764. 


72  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

It  wonld  be  strange  indeed  if  the  coincidence  in  the  number  of 
these  360  monoliths  at  lona,  and  at  Mecca,  had  been  the  result  of 
mere  accident,  when  we  remember  that  these  were  both  the  shrines 
of  races  who  worshipped  the  heavenly  bodies,  and  who  divided  the 
zodiac  into  360  degrees ; — that  the  Arabs,  as  well  as  the  ancient 
Hindoos,  and  their  Western  Druidic  brethren,  reckoned  a  lunar 
year  of  360  days,  believing  the  sun*s  revolution  to  be  completed  in 
the  same  period. 

Among  the  stones  of  lona,  destroyed  by  order  of  the  ruthless 
Synod,  were  three  noble  globes  of  white  marble,  which  lay  in  three 
hollows  worn  on  a  large  stone  slab.  Every  person  visiting  the 
island  was  expected  to  turn  each  of  these  thrice  rounds  following  the 
course  of  the  sun^  according  to  the  custom  of  Deisul,  of  which  we 
find  so  many  traces  in  these  Isles.  The  action  of  course  represented 
the  motion  and  foim  of  the  earth  or  the  apparent  motion  of  the  sun. 

The  stone  on  which  they  rested  was  called  Clach-bratha,  because 
it  was  supposed  that  when  they  had,  by  constant  friction,  worn  a 
hole  right  through  the  stone,  .then  the  broth  or  burning  of  the 
world  would  come.  The  stone  still  lies  beside  the  door  of  St. 
Oran's  Chapel,  though,  unfortunately,  it  has  been  broken  across  the 
middla  In  size  and  shape  it  resembles  a  flat  tombstone,  and  might 
be  passed  by  as  such,  were  it  not  for  a  row  of  cup-like  hollows 
worn  at  one  end  of  it 

These  were  pointed  out  to  me  by  an  old  man,  as  having  been,  in 
his  youth,  occupied  by  stone  balls,  about  the  size  of  a  child's  head 
— ^balls  which  doubtless  had  replaced  the  original  marbles  destroyed 
by  that  iconoclastic  Synod.  He  told  me,  that  in  his  younger  days, 
he,  like  all  his  neighbours,  had  never  passed  that  place  without 
stopping  to  turn  each  of  these  balls  thrice  sunwise  for  luck.  How 
and  when  these  also  disappeared,  he  could  not  telL  Probably,  like 
their  predecessors,  they  had  fallen  victims  to  some  ruthless  and 
senseless  hater  of  ancient  superstition,  himself  too  ignorant  to 
perceive  the  bearing  of  such  trivial  matters  on  divers  vexed 
questions  of  the  day — faint  whispers  from  the  speechless  past^  they 
make  one  long  the  more  to  unravel  its  mysteries. 

For  instance,  how  curious  is  the  coincidence  between  this  custom 


EMBLEMATIC  CRYSTAL  GLOBES.  73 

of  the  old  Draids  of  lona  and  that  of  the  modern  so-called  Fire 
Woishippeis.  Eabbi  Benjamin  in  his  account  of  the  Ghebers  at 
Onlam,  says :  "  Early  in  the  morning,  they  go  in  crowds,  to  pay  their 
devotions  to  the  san,  to  whom  upon  all  the  altiars  are  consecrated 
tphere»j  resembling  the  circles  of  the  sun,  and  when  he  rises,  the 
orbs  seem  to  be  inflamed,  and  twn  round  with  a  great  noise, 
while  the  worshippers,  having  every  man  a  censer  in  his  hand,  offer 
incense  to  the  Sun/'  The  crystal  globe  seems  also  to  have  been 
reverenced  as  a  sacred  symbol  by  the  Babylonians;  at  least  we 
hear  of  such  a  one  being  suspended  on  high  in  the  camp  of  the 
great  king,  that  it  might  catch  and  reflect  the  first  rays  of  the  rising 
sun. 

The  three  mystic  globes  of  lona  were  by  no  means  the  only 
sacred  stones  of  the  Druids,  who  indeed  possessed  many  such, 
mostly  crystals  reputed  to  possess  magic  powers,  and  many  wonders 
were  said  to  have  been  wrought  by  these,  some  of  which  indeed 
retained  their  miraculous  powers  till  recent  days ;  and  water  into 
which  such  an  one  has  been  dipped  has  ever  been  accounted  a 
certain  cure  for  all  manner  of  diseases,  of  men,  of  cattle,  and  of 
horses. 

One  such  magic  crystal,  the  size  of  a  hen's  egg,  is  still  preserved 
by  the  Stewarts  of  Ardvoirlich  in  Perthshire,  and  it  is  believed  that 
water  into  which  it  has  been  dipped,  cures  cattle  of  distemper. 
Even  now,  graziers  sometimes  come  from  long  distances — perhaps 
more  than  forty  miles — to  obtain  this  precious  medicine,  and  are 
greatly  disgusted  at  finding  that  the  far-famed  Clach  Dearg  has 
been  deposited  at  the  bank,  with  other  family  treasures,  and  can 
by  no  means  be  borrowed. 

A  stone  of  the  same  sort  is  the  hereditary  property  of  the 
Bobertsons  of  Struan.  It  is  called  the  Clach-na-Bratach  or  Stone 
of  the  Standard,  and  since  the  days  of  Bannockbum  the  clan  has 
never  gone  to  battle  without  carrying  this  stone,  whose  varying 
colour  boded  good  or  eviL  On  the  Eve  of  Sheriff-muir  a  lai'ge  flaw 
was  detected  in  it,  and  all  present  knew  that  evil  would  befall  them 
on  the  morrow.  No  medical  stores  are  needed  by  those  within  hail 
of  this  precious  charm,  inasmuch  as  the  water  in  which  it  has  been 


74  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

thrice  dipped  (having  first  been  carried  round  it  thrice  sunwise), 
will  assuredly  cure  all  manner  of  diseases  of  men,  of  cattle,  and  of 
horses.      The  Campbells  of  Glen-Lyon  have  a   similar  magical 

curing-stone. 

A  list  of  many  sucb  magical  stonBs  was  compiled  two  hundred 
years  ago,  by  a  Welshman,  curious  in  these  matters,  in  which  he 
mentions  upwards  of  fifty  varieties  in  common  use  among  his 
countrymen  and  the  Scottish  Highlanders ;  some  round,  some  oval, 
some  hollow  rings,  some  of  crystal,  some  of  glass,  but  all  alike  were 
used  medicinally,  especially  on  May  Day  at  the  feast  of  Beltane 
(Beilteine,  "  the  fire  of  Baal "),  when  they  were  dipped  in  water, 
with  which  the  cattle  were  sprinkled  to  save  them  from  the  power 
of  witches  and  elves.  ^ 

One  of  these  precious  crystal  balls  remains  to  this  day  in  the 
family  of  Willox,  the  hereditary  cattle-curers  at  Nairn,  and  is 
reported  to  have  worked  wondrous  cures  in  the  present  generation. 
The  crystal  is  dipped  in  a  bucket  of  water,  which  thereupon  becomes 
a  magic  mirror,  reflecting  the  face  of  the  bad  neighbour  who  has 
bewitched  the  cattle,  and  thus  breaking  his  spelL 

I  have  been  told  that  somewhere  in  Northumberland,  certain 
sacred  Irish  pebbles  are  still  reverenced,  and  are  carefully  kept  in 
a  basket,  and  never  allowed  to  touch  English  ground,  lest  they 
should  lose  the  power  which  they  have  retained  from  time  imme- 
morial, of  healing  any  sore  limb  to  which  they  are  applied. 

But  in  Eoss-shire,  a  whole  lake  has  been  endowed  with  healing 
properties,  from  the  lucky  .'accident  that  a  woman  who  possessed 
certaiu  curative  pebbles,  flung  them  into  Lake  Monar,  rather  than 
allow  herself  to  be  robbed  of  them  by  an  envious  man.     So  to  this 

^  A  silver-mounted  black  flint,  bearing  date  1174,  was  long  treasured  in  the 
family  of  the  Bairds  of  Auchmeddan,  but  is  now  the  property  of  the  Frasers 
of  Findrack.  The  Lockharts  of  Lee  have  proved  more  staunch  guardians  of 
the  celebrated  Lee  penny,  a  small  heart-shaped  red  pebble  set  in  a  coin  of 
Edward  lY.,  and  for  the  purchase  of  which  the  townsfolk  of  Newcastle  offered 
£6000  during  the  terrible  pUgue  in  the  time  of  Charles  I.  They  were  allowed 
to  borrow  **  the  penny  "  for  the  healing  of  their  diseases,  but  the  Laird  of  Lee 
would  by  no  means  consent  to  part  with  it 


ST.  COLUMBA'S  white  P£BBLE.  75 

day,  in  the  months  of  May  and  August,  many  persons  make  pilgrim- 
age thither  from  all  parts  of  Boss,  Sutherland,  Caithness,  Inverness, 
and  even  from  the  Orkneys.  They  must  stand  by  the  loch  at 
midnight, — plunge  in  thrice, — ^make  three  turns  sunwise, — drink  a 
little, — ^throw  a  coin  into  the  loch,  and  take  care  to  he  out  of  sight 
of  the  loch  before  daybreak ! 

If  all  tales  be  true,  the  Celtic  Fathers  were  by  no  means  averse 
to  enlisting  such  magic  in  the  advancement  of  the  Christian  cause. 
It  was  in  consequence  of  a  miracle  thus  wrought,  that  St.  Columba 
was  enabled  to  obtain  possession  of  The  Isle.  For  although  lus 
kinsman  Conal,  the  Christian  King  of  the  Northern  Scots,  is  said 
to  have  bestowed  it  upon  him — a  gift  confirmed  by  Brude,  King  of 
the  Hcts,  when  he  too  was  converted — it  is  not  to  be  supposed  that 
so  powerful  a  body  as  were  the  Druids,  would  have  suffered  them- 
selves to  be  driven  out  without  a  struggle,  had  not  some  supernatural 
influence  been  brought  to  bear  npon  them. 

Accordingly  we  learn  that  the  Arch-Druid  Broichan,  having 
refused  to  release  a  certain  captive  Irish-woman  at  the  request  of 
St.  Columba,  the  latter,  proceeding  to  the  river  Ness,  took  thence 
a  white  pebble,  and,  showing  it  to  his  companions,  told  them  that 
the  Angel  of  God  had  stricken  the  Arch-Druid  with  a  sudden 
stroke,  so  that  he  lay  nigh  unto  death,  but  that  should  he  repent, 
he  had  only  to  drink  a  cup  of  water  in  which  that  pebble  had  been 
dipped,  and  he  would  assuredly  recover.  While  he  yet  spake,  two 
horsemen  galloped  up,  bearing  tidings  from  the  king,  that  all  had 
befallen  even  as  Columba  had  predicted.  The  holy  man  straight- 
way sent  messengers  to  the  palace ;  they  received  the  captive  from 
the  hand  of  the  repentant  Broichan,  while  he  himself,  having  drunk 
of  that  mystic  cup  (whereon  the  pebble  floated  as  though  it  had 
been  a  nut),  was  immediately  made  whole.  That  little  pebble 
was  afterwards  preserved  among  the  treasures  of  King  Brude, 
and  retaining  its  miraculous  power  of  floating  on  water  (in 
common  with  other  magical  stones),  it  wrought  divers  wondrous 
curea 

Thus  it  was,  that  when  the  king  proposed  to  bestow  on  St. 
Columba  the  Innia-nan-Druidanach,  the  Holy  Isle  of  the  Druids, 


76  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

he  was  suffered  to  hold  it  in  peace  and  without  great  opposition, 
and  by  degrees  the  name  of  the  Isle  was  changed  to  LColm-killy 
"  The  Isle  of  the  Cell  of  Calum  or  Malcolm." 

Whether  fairly  or  otherwise,  St  Columba  is  credited  with  having 
taken  considerable  advantage  of  the  popular  superstitions  of  his 
day.  For  instance,  when  first  he  sought  admission  to  the  presence 
of  the  heathen  King  Brude,  the  latter  refused  to  give  him  audience, 
and  bade  his  followers  bar  the  door  of  his  rude  palace.  Then  St. 
Columba  deliberately  walked  round  the  king's  house  widder  shins, 
i.  6.  in  the  direction  contrary  to  the  course  of  the  sun  (an  action 
which  was  equivalent  to  a  most  solemn  curse).  Thereupon  the 
door  fell  open  of  its  own  accord,  and  the  saint  entered  the  royal 
presence.  St.  Adamnan,  however,  afi&rms  that  the  cross  signed  on 
the  palace  gate  was  the  sole  talisman  used  on  that  occasion,  and  that 
immediately  the  gates  burst  open.  He  says  too,  that  as  St.  Columba 
approached  the  Pictiah  fort,  chanting  the  45th  Psalm,  his  voice 
was  so  miraculously  strengthened,  as  to  be  heard  like  a  thunder- 
peal above  the  clamour,  whereby  the  Pictish  magicians  strove  to 
silence  his  evening  prayer. 

When  St  Columba  took  up  his  abode  on  The  Isle,  his  first  care 
was  to  build  a  chapel  and  '*  an  hospice  "  beside  the  370  grey  mono- 
liths. He  accordingly  sent  forth  his  monks  to  gather  **  bundles  of 
twigs  "  for  this  purpose  ;  the  architecture  of  those  days  (a.d.  563), 
being  exceedingly  primitive,  wattle  and  daub  ^  formed  the  materials 
of  these  early  thatched  churches.  Where  the  brethren  found  the 
twigs  I  am  at  a  loss  to  imagine,  as  there  certainly  are  none  on  lona 
now ;  (at  least  I  failed  to  find  any  vegetation  of  taller  growth  than 
beautiful  hart's-tongue  ferns  in  some  ravines  on  the  further 
shore).  It  may,  however,  have  been  otherwise  thirteen  hundred 
years  ago,  or  else  the  brethren  must  certainly  have  gone  across  to 
Mull,  in  search  of  sticks.     But  I  should  think  that  the  stones  and 

^  With  the  exception  of  fortified  castles,  all  superior  dwelling-hooses  on 
the  Isles  seem  to  have  been  built  in  this  style  until  a  very  recent  period. 
Dr.  Norman  Madeod  speaks  of  Qlendessary  and  several  other  houses,  as 
eonstntetid  of  wiekerwork,  the  outside  being  protected  with  straw,  the  interior 
lined  with  wood. 


THE  HOLY  ISLE.  77 

rabble  and  turf  which  lay  ready  to  their  hand,  were  turned  to  very 
good  account  by  these  rough  and  ready  builders. 

Looking  at  this  little  lonely  isle  as  we  see  it  to-day,  where  there 
remain  only  the  grey  ruins  of  the  comparatively  recent  cathedral, 
and  all  is  silent  and  desolate,  it  is  strange  indeed  to  think  of  all  the 
countless  memories  which  cluster  round  that  hallowed  ground,  even 
dating  only  from  the  Chnstian  era,  when  the  fame  of  St.  Columba 
attracted  thither  men  of  all  races  of  Northern  Europe — some  seeking 
the  learning  of  the  Fathers ;  wise  men  coming  from  afar,  to  consult 
those  deemed  wiser  still,  on  affairs  of  Church  and  State  ;  chieftains 
and  Vikings  coming  to  seek  blessings ;  penitents  to  confess  their 
crimes  (murder  and  sacrilege  and  cruel  forays),  that  they  might  do 
penance  meet,  and  open  a  fresh  account  with  heayen.  Here  kings 
came,  seeking  consecration,  and  their  fleets  of  strange  quaint  galleys, 
with  curious  sails  and  multitudinous  oars,  were  anchored  in  these 
quiet  harbours ;  such  vessels  as  that  in  which  King  Haco  came  from 
Norway — ^a  great  ship  built  wholly  of  oak,  having  twenty-seven 
banks  of  oars,  and  adorned  with  curiously-wrought  gilded  dragons. 

Oftener  than  all  came  sad  funeral  processions,  galleys  freighted 
with  the  dead,  coming  to  claim  a  last  resting-place  in  this  hallowed 
isle  of  graves.  Chiefs  and  kings,  ecclesiastics  and  warriors,  were 
thus  brought  from  afar  across  the  stormy  seas,  that  their  dust  might 
not  be  disturbed  by  the  terrible  flood,  announced  in  an  ancient 
prophecy,  which  foretold,  that  seven  years  before  the  'end  of  the 
world,  Ireland  and  The  Isles  should  all  be  overwhelmed,  and  lona 
alone  should  rise  above  the  waters. 

Strange,  is  it  noti  to  think  of  all  the  interests  that  gather  round 
one  little  rocky  isle,  lying  so  far  away  in  the  midst  of  this  Hebridean 
sea,  and  to  think  how  from  its  wave-beaten  shores  the  great  pure 
light  arose,  which,  radiating  thence  on  every  side,  never  waned  till 
the  whole  land  was  Christianized,  and  churches  and  chapels  were 
established  in  every  comer.  Then  the  noble  Mother  Church, 
having  done  her  great  work,  seems  to  have  died  an  unnatural  death, 
and  been  suffered  to  fall  into  such  a  state  of  ruin  and  decay  as  is 
hard  to  account  for,  unless  the  solution  lie  in  that  old  proverb 
which  tells  how,  **  when  the  croriers  became  golden,  the  bishops 


78  IN    THE   HEBRIDES. 

became  wooden,"  and  so  perhaps  the  old  fire  and  vigour  died  out, 
and  the  Churchmen  preferred  more  secure  dwellings  on  the  main- 
land, to  the  dangers  and  perils  that  surrounded  them  on  Columba's 
Isle. 

On  every  side  Columba's  resistless  energies  spread  themselves 
forth,  as  he  sailed  from  isle  to  isle,  from  shore  to  shore — the  busiest 
Bishop  that  ever  ruled  and  comforted  a  flock  of  his  own  gathering. 
Though  we  associate  his  name  so  wholly  with  Zona,  we  know  that 
the  greater  part  of  his  time  was  spent  in  constant  visitation  of  the 
neighbouring  isles  and  mainland,  where  he  founded  xipwards  of 
fifty  churches,  while  in  latter  life  he  so  far  retracted  his  vow  of 
eternal  separation  from  the  Emerald  Isle  as  to  return  thither  several 
times  to  strengthen  the  hands  of  his  brethren.  He  had  founded 
Derry  in  a.d.  546,  when  he  was  only  twenty-five  years  of  age,  and 
Durrow,  the  greatest  of  his  Irish  monasteries,  a  few  years  later. 
First  and  last  it  is  said  that  at  least  thirty  abbeys  and  churches 
in  Ireland  owe  their  origin  and  celebrity  to  him.  It  must  be 
remembered  that  he  was  forty-two  years  of  age  ere  he  left  his 
native  land,  so  that  Ireland  received  a  full  share  of  his  seventy-six 
years  of  life.  His  own  county  of  Donegal  is  especially  rich  in 
memorials  of  St.  Columba. 

Besides  the  work  he  did  in  person,  he  sent  forth  his  brethren  in 
all  directions  to  teach  and  to  preach,  so  that  ere  long  there  was 
scarcely  an  island  or  a  quiet  bay  along  the  seaboard  where  one  or 
other  of  the  Celtic  Fathers  had  not  built  his  little  lonely  chapel,  to 
shed  its  ray  of  light  on  the  Pagan  people. 

A  little  green  hillock  overlooking  the  old  monastery,  still  bears 
the  name  of  Tor  Ab,  the  Abbot's  Hill ;  because  here,  it  was  said,  he 
was  wont  to  sit  and  meditate  while  scanning  the  blue  waters,  to 
catch  the  first  glimpse  of  galleys  that  might  be  approaching  his  Isle, 
bearing  saints  or  sinners — perplexed  brethren,  or  warriors  red-handed 
from  foray  or  murder— <;oming  to  seek  his  counsel  in  their  difii- 
culties,  or  absolution  from  their  crimes.  Once  the  little  hill  was 
crowned  with  one  of  those  tall  Ionic  crosses,  the  site  of  which, 
however,  is  now  marked  only  by  a  fragment  of  the  base. 

Thence  he  could  look  across  the  narrow  straits  which  separate 


ECCLESIASTICAL  AQKICULTUBE.  79 

lona  from  the  great  hills  of  Mull,  and  with  keen  eye  discern  the 
approach  of  pilgrims  who  chose  to  shorten  their  long  sea-voyage  by 
traversing  Mull's  savage  mountain  glens,  and  who,  on  reaching  the 
opposite  shore,  had  only  to  cry  aloud  to  attract  the  attention  of  the 
brethren  of  the  monastery,  who  were  ever  ready  to  ferry  all  comers 
across  the  Straits,  and  give  them  hearty  welcome  to  a  shelter  and  a 
share  of  such  rude  fare  as  they  themselves  possessed. 

Bemote,  indeed,  must  have  seemed  that  island  home,  when  frail 
sailing-boats  were  the  sole  means  of  access  to  the  great  world  ;  and 
a  difficult  and  dangerous  journey  this  was  too,  for  the  pilgrims  who 
crowded  thither ;  though  now  made  so  simple  and  comfortable  for 
the  bands  of  tourists  who,  availing  themselves  of  swift  steamboats, 
look  upon  a  day's  run  to  lona  and  back  again,  as  an  easy  pleasure 
trip. 

Very  different  too,  from  the  cruciform  Cathedral  of  massive  red 
granite  (the  ruins  of  which  we  now  see  on  the  Isle)  was  the  humble 
chapel,  surrounded  by  a  group  of  rude  monastic  cells,  which  were 
the  only  "  visible  Church  "  and  monastery  of  those  days  ;  but  little 
did  the  pilgrims  reck  of  outward  things,  while  the  very  presence 
of  Stw  Columba  diffused  such  life  and  energy  to  all  around  him. 

One  of  his  distinguishing  features  was  that  marvellously  clear 
and  musical  voice,  so  powerful  that,  according  to  his  biographers, 
he  could  be  distinctly  heard  a  mile  off,  so,  from  his  lowly  chapel, 
wherever  he  might  be,  on  island  or  on  mainland.  Christian  hymns 
were  wont  to  rise  in  tones  so  sweet  and  clear,  that  the  heathen 
could  not  choose  but  listen,  and  be  attracted. 

His  disciples  were  not  allowed  to  eat  the  bread  of  idleness.  He 
taught  them  to  be  diligent  in  agricultural  work,  and  the  natural 
fertility  of  lona  was  of  course,  attributed  to  a  miraculous  blessing.^ 

Knowing  the  necessity  for  good  roads  across  the  sometimes 
swampy  moorland,  St.  Columba  had  a  substantial  causeway  laid 
right  across  the  Isle,  from  the  monastery  to  the  western  shore,  where 

^  Happily  it  retains  this  characteristic,  and  moreover  its  harvest  is  generally 
remarkably  early,  beiog  sometimes  garnered  in  August,  a  rare  advantage  in 
this  region  of  much  rain.  About  one-fourth  of  its  two  thousand  acres  are 
under  tillage. 


78  IN    THE    HEBRIDES. 

became  wooden,"  and  so  perhaps  the  old  fire  and  vigour  died  out, 
and  the  Churchmen  preferred  more  secure  dwellings  on  the  main* 
land,  to  the  dangers  and  perils  that  surrounded  them  on  Columba's 
Isle. 

On  every  side  Columba*s  resistless  energies  spread  themselves 
forth,  as  he  sailed  from  isle  to  isle,  from  shore  to  shore — the  busiest 
Bishop  that  ever  ruled  and  comforted  a  flock  of  his  own  gathering. 
Though  we  associate  his  name  so  wholly  with  lona,  we  know  that 
the  greater  part  of  his  time  was  spent  in  constant  visitation  of  the 
neighbouring  isles  and  mainland,  where  he  founded  upwards  of 
fifty  churches,  while  in  latter  life  he  so  far  retracted  his  vow  of 
eternal  separation  from  the  Emerald  Isle  as  to  return  thither  several 
times  to  strengthen  the  hands  of  his  brethren.  He  had  founded 
Deny  in  a.d.  546,  when  he  was  only  twenty-five  years  of  age,  and 
Durrow,  the  greatest  of  his  Irish  monasteries,  a  few  years  later. 
First  and  last  it  is  said  that  at  least  thirty  abbeys  and  churches 
in  Ireland  owe  their  origin  and  celebrity  to  him.  It  must  be 
remembered  that  he  was  forty-two  years  of  age  ere  he  left  his 
native  land,  so  that  Ireland  received  a  full  share  of  his  seventy-six 
years  of  life.  HLs  own  county  of  Donegal  is  especially  rich  in 
memorials  of  St.  Columba. 

Besides  the  work  he  did  in  person,  he  sent  forth  his  brethren  in 
all  directions  to  teach  and  to  preach,  so  that  ere  long  there  was 
scarcely  an  island  or  a  quiet  bay  along  the  seaboard  where  one  or 
other  of  the  Celtic  Fathers  had  not  built  his  little  lonely  chapel,  to 
shed  its  ray  of  light  on  the  Pagan  people. 

A  little  green  hillock  overlooking  the  old  monastery,  still  bears 
the  name  of  Tor  Ab,  the  Abbot's  Hill ;  because  here,  it  was  said,  he 
was  wont  to  sit  and  meditate  while  scanning  the  blue  waters,  to 
catch  the  first  glimpse  of  galleys  that  might  be  approaching  his  Isle, 
bearing  saints  or  sinners — perplexed  brethren,  or  warriors  red-handed 
from  foray  or  murder — coming  to  seek  his  counsel  in  their  diffi- 
culties, or  absolution  from  their  crimes.  Once  the  little  hill  was 
crowned  with  one  of  those  tall  Ionic  crosses,  the  site  of  which, 
however,  is  now  marked  only  by  a  fragment  of  the  base. 

Thence  he  could  look  across  the  narrow  straits  which  separate 


ECfCLESIASTICAL  AGRICULTURE.  79 

lona  from  the  great  hills  of  Mull,  and  with  keen  eye  discern  the 
approach  of  pilgrims  who  chose  to  shorten  their  long  searvoyage  by 
trayersing  Mull's  savage  mountcdn  glens,  and  who,  on  reaching  the 
opposite  shore,  had  only  to  cry  aloud  to  attract  the  attention  of  the 
brethren  of  the  monastery,  who  were  ever  ready  to  ferry  all  comers 
across  the  Straits,  and  give  them  hearty  welcome  to  a  shelter  and  a 
share  of  such  rude  fare  as  they  themselves  possessed. 

Bemote,  indeed,  must  have  seemed  that  island  home,  when  frail 
sailing-boats  were  the  sole  means  of  access  to  the  great  world  ;  and 
a  difficult  and  dangerous  journey  this  was  too,  for  the  pilgrims  who 
crowded  thither ;  though  now  made  so  simple  and  comfortable  for 
the  bands  of  tourists  who,  availing  themselves  of  swift  steamboats, 
look  upon  a  day's  run  to  lona  and  back  again,  as  an  easy  pleasure 
trip- 

Very  different  too,  from  the  cruciform  Cathedral  of  massive  red 
granite  (the  ruins  of  which  we  now  see  on  the  Isle)  was  the  humble 
chapel,  surrounded  by  a  group  of  rude  monastic  cells,  which  were 
the  only  *^  visible  Church  "  and  monastery  of  those  days  ;  but  little 
did  the  pilgrims  reck  of  outward  things,  while  the  very  presence 
of  St.  Columba  diffused  such  life  and  energy  to  all  around  him. 

One  of  his  distinguishing  features  was  that  marvellously  clear 
and  musical  voice,  so  powerful  that,  according  to  his  biographers, 
he  could  be  distinctly  heard  a  mile  off,  so,  from  his  lowly  chapel, 
wherever  he  might  be,  on  island  or  on  mainland.  Christian  hymns 
were  wont  to  rise  in  tones  so  sweet  and  clear,  that  the  heathen 
could  not  choose  but  listen,  and  be  attracted. 

His  disciples  were  not  allowed  to  eat  the  bread  of  idleness.  He 
taught  them  to  be  diligent  in  agricultural  work,  and  the  natural 
fertility  of  lona  was  of  course,  attributed  to  a  miraculous  blessing.^ 

Knowing  the  necessity  for  good  roads  across  the  sometimes 
swampy  moorland,  St.  Columba  had  a  substantial  causeway  laid 
right  across  the  Isle,  from  the  monastery  to  the  western  shore,  where 

*  Happily  it  retains  this  characteristic,  and  moreover  its  harvest  la  generally 
remarkably  early,  being  sometimes  garnered  in  August,  a  rare  advantage  in 
this  region  of  much  rain.  About  one-fourth  of  its  two  thousand  acres  are 
under  tillage. 


78  IN    THE   HEBRIDES. 

became  wooden,"  and  00  perhaps  the  old  fire  and  vigour  died  out, 
and  the  Churchmen  preferred  more  secure  dwellings  on  the  main- 
land, to  the  dangers  and  perils  that  surrounded  them  on  Columba's 
Isle. 

On  every  side  Columba's  resistless  energies  spread  themselves 
forth,  as  he  sailed  from  isle  to  isle,  from  shore  to  shore — the  busiest 
Bishop  that  ever  ruled  and  comforted  a  flock  of  his  own  gathering. 
Though  we  associate  his  name  so  wholly  with  lona,  we  know  that 
the  greater  part  of  his  time  was  spent  in  constant  visitation  of  the 
neighbouring  isles  and  mainland,  where  he  founded  upwards  of 
fifty  churches,  while  in  latter  life  he  so  far  retracted  his  vow  of 
eternal  separation  from  the  Emerald  Isle  as  to  return  thither  several 
times  to  strengthen  the  hands  of  his  brethren.  He  had  founded 
Derry  in  a.d.  546,  when  he  was  only  twenty-five  years  of  age,  and 
Durrow,  the  greatest  of  his  Irish  monasteries,  a  few  years  later. 
First  and  last  it  is  said  that  at  least  thirty  abbeys  and  churches 
in  Ireland  owe  their  origin  and  celebrity  to  him.  It  must  be 
remembered  that  he  was  forty-two  years  of  age  ere  he  left  his 
native  land,  so  that  Ireland  received  a  full  share  of  his  seventy-six 
years  of  life.  His  own  county  of  Donegal  is  especially  rich  in 
memorials  of  St.  Columba. 

Besides  the  work  he  did  in  person,  he  sent  forth  his  brethren  in 
all  directions  to  teach  and  to  preach,  so  that  ere  long  there  was 
scarcely  an  island  or  a  quiet  bay  along  the  seaboard  where  one  or 
other  of  the  Celtic  Fathers  had  not  built  his  little  lonely  chapel,  to 
shed  its  ray  of  light  on  the  Pagan  people* 

A  little  green  hillock  overlooking  the  old  monastery,  still  bears 
the  name  of  Tor  Ab,  the  Abbot's  Hill ;  because  here,  it  was  said,  he 
was  wont  to  sit  and  meditate  while  scanning  the  blue  waters,  to 
catch  the  first  glimpse  of  galleys  that  might  be  approaching  his  Isle, 
bearing  saints  or  sinners — perplexed  brethren,  or  warriors  red-handed 
from  foray  or  murder — coming  to  seek  his  counsel  in  their  diffi- 
culties, or  absolution  from  their  crimes.  Once  the  little  hill  was 
crowned  with  one  of  those  tall  Ionic  crosses,  the  site  of  which, 
however,  is  now  marked  only  by  a  fragment  of  the  base. 

Thence  he  could  look  across  the  narrow  straits  which  separate 


ECCLESIASTICAL  AGRICULTURE.  79 

lona  from  the  great  hills  of  Mull,  and  with  keen  eye  discern  the 
approach  of  pilgrims  who  chose  to  shorten  their  long  sea-voyage  by 
trayersing  Mall's  savage  mountain  glens,  and  who,  on  reaching  the 
opposite  shore,  had  only  to  cry  aloud  to  attract  the  attention  of  the 
brethren  of  the  monastery,  who  were  ever  ready  to  ferry  all  comers 
across  the  Straits,  and  give  them  hearty  welcome  to  a  shelter  and  a 
share  of  such  rude  fare  as  they  themselves  possessed. 

Eemote,  indeed,  must  have  seemed  that  island  home,  when  frail 
sailing-boats  were  the  sole  means  of  access  to  the  great  world  ;  and 
a  difficult  and  dangerous  journey  this  was  too,  for  the  pilgrims  who 
crowded  thither ;  though  now  made  so  simple  and  comfortable  for 
the  bands  of  tourists  who,  availing  themselves  of  swift  steamboats, 
look  upon  a  day's  run  to  lona  and  back  again,  as  an  easy  pleasure 
trip. 

Very  different  too,  from  the  cruciform  Cathedral  of  massive  red 
granite  (the  ruins  of  which  we  now  see  on  the  Isle)  was  the  humble 
chapel,  surrounded  by  a  group  of  rude  monastic  cells,  which  were 
the  only  **  visible  Church  "  and  monastery  of  those  days  ;  but  little 
did  the  pilgrims  reck  of  outward  things,  while  the  very  presence 
of  Stb  Columba  diffused  such  life  and  energy  to  all  around  him. 

One  of  his  distinguishing  features  was  that  marvellously  clear 
and  musical  voice,  so  powerful  that,  according  to  his  biographers, 
he  could  be  distinctly  heard  a  mile  off,  so,  from  his  lowly  chapel, 
wherever  he  might  be,  on  island  or  on  mainland,  Christian  hymns 
were  wont  to  rise  in  tones  so  sweet  and  clear,  that  the  heathen 
could  not  choose  but  listen,  and  be  attracted. 

EUs  disciples  were  not  allowed  to  eat  the  bread  of  idleness.  He 
taught  them  to  be  diligent  in  agricultural  work,  and  the  natural 
fertility  of  lona  was  of  course,  attributed  to  a  miraculous  blessing.^ 

Knowing  the  necessity  for  good  roads  across  the  sometimes 
swampy  moorland,  St.  Columba  had  a  substantial  causeway  laid 
right  across  the  Isle,  from  the  monastery  to  the  western  shore,  where 

^  Happily  it  retains  this  characteristic,  and  moreover  its  harvest  is  generally 
remarkably  early,  being  sometimes  garnered  in  August,  a  rare  advantage  in 
this  legion  of  much  rain.  About  one-fourth  of  its  two  thousand  acres  are 
under  tillage. 


84  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

wanderings,  starting  from  the  plains  of  Luz,  where,  on  one  memorable 
night  some  four  thousand  years  ago,  it  served  as  the  pillow  whereon 
Jacob  rested  his  weary  head  while  beholding  the  vision  of  angels. 

Thence  it  was  carried  into  Egypt  by  the  Israelites,  as  a  precious 
memorial,  and  there  it  was  left  by  them,  on  the  night  of  their 
hurried  departure  from  the  land  of  their  captivity,  but  continued  to 
be  held  in  reverence  by  the  Egyptians.  Now  there  was  a  certain 
Prince  of  Athens  named  Gayelglas,  who  arrived  in  Egypt  jast  at 
the  time  of  the  Exodus,  to  help  Pharaoh  against  the  Ethiopians. 
As  the  reward  of  victory,  he  claimed  the  hand  of  Scota,  the  beautiful 
daughter  of  Pharaoh. 

The  young  couple  seem  to  have  had  a  wholesome  terror  of  the 
plagues  wherewith  Egypt  had  been  scourged,  and  determined  to 
seek  a  new  home  ;  so,  taking  with  them  a  handful  of  the  Egyptian 
army  wh\ch  had  escaped  from  the  destruction  of  the  Bed  Sea,  and 
a  company  of  Greek  ''heroes  of  dark  blue  weapons,"  they  made 
their  way  to  Spain,  carrying  with  them  the  Israelite  stone  of  good 
omen.^  They  founded  a  kingdom  at  Brigautium,  where,  according 
to  one  account,  they  lived  and  died,  and  their  descendants  for  many 
generations  were  crowned  on  the  mystic  stone. 

At  length,  about  the  year  B.C.  580,  Simon  Breck,  a  younger  son 
of  one  of  these  kings  of  Spain,  determined  to  found  a  new  kingdom 
for  himself,  and  having  carried  off  the  precious  regal  stone,  he  made 
his  way  to  the  shores  of  Ireland,  ''ane  rude  island  opposite  to 
Spaine,  in  the  north,  inhabited  by  ane  rude  people,  having  neither 
laws  nor  manners."  He  called  this  people  Scoti,  after  the  name  of 
his  Egyptian  ancestress,  and  the  land  Hibernia,  after  his  favourite 
general  Hiber.     Another  version  of  the  story  tells  how  Scota  her- 

>  In  [the  '  Chronicle  of  the  Scots,'  preserved  in  the  British  Museum,  and 
bearing  date  a.i>.  1412,  we  read  that— 

''  Te  nation  of  Scotts  began  in  y^  time  of  Moses,  as  is  contained  in  y* 
Bibill ;  .  .  .  Scota  and  Gayelglas  were  maryite  together  in  y*  time  yat  y* 
baimes  of  Israel  paasyt  in  y*  Red  Sea,  and  y*  death  of  Pharaoh  yat  governed 
y*  land  of  Egypt.  And  for  they  saw  y*  cruel  plagues  that  came  on  Egypt, 
they  decreed  to  pass  with  their  folk  that  they  brought  of  Greece,  and  many  of 
Egypt,  for  to  seek  void  lands  and  to  inhabit  them  ;  they  went  with  gret  riches 
and  many  ships,  and  so  they  came  to  Spain.*'  ^ 


THE  CORONATION-STONE.  85 

nelf  came  in  person  to  the  Emerald  Isle,  and  so  captivated  the  sons 
of  Erin  by  her  beauty  and  her  grace,  that  in  her  honour  they 
henceforth  adopted  the  name  of  Scoti,  and  called  their  land  Ibemia, 
after  her  son  Iber. 

Thus  the  Stone  of  Luz  was  brought  to  figure  in  the  story  of  the 
Irish  Kings.  Time  wore  on,  and  we  next  hear  of  it,  when  a  later 
descendant  of  Scota,  Fergus  L,  son  of  Ferchard,  sailed  across  the 
stormy  seas,  and  established  a  new  colony  of  Scots  in  Argyleshire, 
where  he  built  the  town  called  Beregonium.  Of  course,  he  did  not 
fail  to  bring  with  him  the  mysterious  stone,  which  his  ancestors 
had  held  in  such  honour  from  generation  to  generation. 

Here,  however,  it  found  but  a  temporary  resting-place,  for  already 
the  fame  of  lona,  the  Druids'  Holy  Isle,  made  Fergus  decide  on 
going  thither  for  his  coronation.  Once  more,  therefore,  this  migra- 
tory stone  was  embarked,  that  its  presence  might  sanction  the 
ceremony.     Thus  it  reached  lona  about  a.d.  530. 

We  next  hear  of  it  in  a.d.  597,  when  Columba — like  Jacob  of 
old — adopted  it  as  his  stony  pillow,  and  thereon  rested  his  sacred 
head  when  he  slept  the  sleep  of  death.  Then,  for  the  second  time, 
this  wondrous  stone  became  associated  with  angelic  visions  ;  for  as 
the  dark  shades  of  death  were  closing  round  him,  St.  Columba 
beheld  bright  angels  coming  down  from  heaven,  and  their  presence 
filled  the  little  church  with  unearthly  light — a  light  whose  splendour 
illuminated  the  whole  sky,  while  the  angelic  guard  wafted  the  saintly 
Bonl  from  the  Holy  Isle  to  the  place  prepared  for  it  in  Heaven. 

Soon  after  St.  Columba's  death,  the  venerated  treasure  was 
removed  to  Evonium  (now  called  Dunsta&age)  by  Evenus,  one  of 
the  shadowy  Dalriadic  kings,  who  built  his  tower  on  the  same  site 
as  the  mighty  ruined  fortress  of  later  days  now  stands.  A  hollow 
niche  in  one  of  the  vaults  is  pointed  out  as  the  resting-place  of  this 
well-guarded  treasure. 

At  Dunstaffnage  the  wandering  stone  seems  to  have  remained 
undisturbed  till  the  year  a.d.  834,  when  its  travels  recommenced, 
and  it  was  removed  to  Scone  by  Kenneth  II.  to  commemorate  his 
having  there  obtained  his  chief  victory  over  the  Picts.  At  Scone, 
88  we  all  know,  it  was  suffered  to  remain  till  1296,  when  Edward  L 


86  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

transported  it  to  London,  and  deposited  it  in  its  present  hononrable 
position  in  the  grand  old  Abbey  of  Westminster,  where  to  this  day 
it  still  retains  its  old  king-making  prerogative,  and  lies  in  a  hollow 
space  beneath  the  seat  of  King  Edward's  wooden  coronation  chair, 
whence  it  continues  to  impart  its  mystic  virtue  to  every  British 
sovereign. 

Even  Cromwell,  grim  destroyer  of  all  monuments  of  superstition, 
did  not  disdain  to  borrow  a  legalizing  virtue  from  the  old  stone,  for 
we  are  told  that  "  when  he  was  installed  as  Lord  Protector  in 
"Westminster  Hall,  he  was  placed  in  the  chair  of  Scotland,  brought 
out  of  Westminster  Abbey  for  that  singular  and  special  occasion." 
To  the  outward  eye  it  appears  only  to  be  a  rough  block  of  red 
sandstone  rudely  squared,  and  measuring  26  inches  in  length,  16f 
inches  in  breadth,  and  10^  inches  in  depth.  Its  cracked  and 
battered  appearance  tells  of  many  a  chance  blow  received  in  the. 
course  of  its  wanderings,  while  the  rusty  iron  rings  attached  on 
either  side  to  facilitate  its  transport,  are  also  suggestive  of  its  many 
migrations  from  kingdom  to  kingdom. 

A  strangely-suggestive  link,  in  truth,  is  this  time-honoured 
symbol  of  royalty,  connecting  ages  far  apart  by  one  curious  bond, 
namely,  the  utterly  unaccountable  reverence  for  a  poor  battered  old 
stone,  the  history  ahd  origin  of  which  are  alike  matter  of  vaguest 
tradition,  and  which,  nevertheless,  retains  its  position,  deeply-rooted 
in  the  very  heart  of  our  monarchic  constitution,  connecting  the 
stateliest  ceremony  of  modem  England  with  the  earliest  trace  of 
superstitious  homage  paid  to  the  rude  warrior  chiefs  of  the  Dalriad 
Scots,  or  our  still  more  shadowy  ancestral  princes  of  Ireland  ;  a 
stone,  in  short,  which  has  been  the  silent  witness,  as  well  as  the 
authority  for,  the  coronation  of  each  successive  generation  in  these 
isles  for  upwards  of  2400  years. 

The  Dean  of  Westminster,  speaking  of  its  present  position  in 
his  grand  old  abbey,  compares  it  to  **  Araunah's  rocky  threshing- 
floor  in  the  midst  of  the  Temple  of  Solomon,  carrying  back  our 
thoughts  to  races  and  customs  now  almost  extinct ;  an  element  of 
poetic,  patriarchal,  heathen  times ;  a  link  which  unites  the  throne 
of  England  with  the  traditions  of  Tara  and  lona,  and  connects  the 


THE  BURIAL-PLACE  OF  KINGS.  87 

charm  of  our  complex  civilization  with  the  forces  of  Mother  Earth, 
the  stocks  and  stones  of  savage' Nature.^' 

Of  the  actual  buildings  of  St.  Columba,  all  trace  has,  of  coarse, 
long  since  passed  away,  as  we  may  well  believe,  from  their  frail 
nature.  Consequently,  by  far  the  oldest  Christian  building  on  the 
isle  is  that  which  bears  the  name  of  St.  Oran's  Chapel,  which  was 
built  in  the  eleventh  century  (that  is,  five  hundred  years  after  St. 
Columba's  death),  by  the  saintly  Queen  Margaret,  wife  of  Malcolm 
Caenmore,  on  the  very  site  of  the  original  chapel,  built  by  the 
great  Abbot  himself,  and  called  by  the  name  of  his  friend  and 
co-worker. 

Around  it  lies  the  sacred  enclosure  known  as  the  Reilig  Orain — 
the  far-famed  place  of  burial  to  which,  from  time  immemorial,  kings, 
saints,  and  warriors  have  been  brought  from  so  many  lands,  to  rest 
on  this  favoured  isle.  The  place  is  called  in  Gaelic,  "  the  ridge  of 
kings,"  and  formerly  three  separate  covered  chapels,  inscribed  in 
Latin  as  "  Tumulus  Regum  Scotiffi,"  "  Tumulus  Regum  Hyberniae," 
and  **  Tumulus  Regum  Norwegiae,"  were  set  apart  to  receive  the 
royal  dead  of  those  nations.     For  so  it  was,  that  on  this  bleak  isle, 

^*  Beneath  the  showery  west, 
The  mighty  kings  of  three  fair  reahns  were  laid.'* 

Here  forty-eight  crowned  kings  of  Scotland  sleep  their  last  sleep  ; 

a  long  list  of  royal  names,  ending  with  those  of  the  murdered 

Duncan  and  Macbeth,  both  of  whom  were,  as  Shakespeare  says  of 

Duncan  : — 

"  Carried  to  Colm's-kill, 
The  sacred  store-house  of  his  predecessors, 
And  guardian  of  their  bones." 

Macbeth  was  the  last  Scottish  king  who  was  buried  here.  After 
his  death,  Dunfermline  was  appointed  to^be  the  place  of  kingly 
sepulture,  and  there  Malcolm  Caenmore  was  buried. 

Four  kings  of  Ireland  were  also  buried  in  the  Reilig  Orain,  and 
even  from  "  Noroway  over  the  foam "  were  royal  dead  carried 
hither.  Eight  Danish  and  Norwegian  searkings  were  brought  in 
solemn   state,  that  they  might  sleep  the  more  peacefully  near 


88  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

Columba's  sainted  dust.  Of  great  lords,  temporal  and  ecclesiastical, 
the  multitude  is  without  number,  and  includes  at  least  one  Bishop 
of  Canterbury,  Tumbull  by  name.  In  short  the  island  has  been 
described  as  "  the  Jerusalem  of  the  various  Celtic  tribes,  who  sought 
safety  in  the  eternal  world  by  laying  their  bones  in  lona." 

That  this  feeling  of  veneration  for  the  Isle  existed  long  before 
the  arrival  of  St.  Columba  is  evident,  were  it  only  from  the  fact  of 
Xing  Fergus  having  sailed  to  lona  for  his  coronation,  though  the 
mainland  would  surely  have  been  more  convenient  for  that  ceremony, 
and  we  afterwards  hear  of  his  body  being  carried  thither  for  burial, 
many  years  before  the  fiery  priest  had  been  exiled  from  his  loved 
home  in  the  Emerald  Isle.^ 

This  unique  burial-ground  has  been  so'ruthlessly  despoiled  of  its 

« 

monuments  and  crosses,  that  imagination  is  sorely  taxed  to  picture 
it  as  it  was  in  its  palmy  days,  or  even  as  described  by  Munro,  Dean 
of  the  Isles,  in  a.d.  1594,  that  is  to  say,  upwards  of  thirty  years  after 
the  destniction  of  the  360  great  grey  Crosses,  so  that  even  then,  the 
scene  had  lost  its  most  striking  characteristic.  He  says  :  "  Within 
this  isle  of  Kilm  kill  (I-Colm-kill)  there  is  a  kirkzaird,  callit  in 
Eriche,  Rellig  Onrain,  quhilk  is  a  very  fair  kirkzaird,  and  we  ill 
bigg  it  about  with  staine  and  lyme.  Into  this  sanctuary  there  are 
three  tombes  of  staine,  formit  like  little  chapels,  with  ane  braide  grey 
marble,  or  quhin  staine,  in  the  gavil  of  ilk  of  the  tombes. 

''  In  the  staine  of  the  ane  tombe  there  ia  written  in  Latin  letters, 
Tumulvs  Eegum  ScoticB^ — that  is,  the  tombe  ore  grave  of  the  Scottis 
Kings.  Within  this  tombe,  according  to  our  Scottes  and  Erische 
cronikles,  ther  laye  forteij-eight  crowned  Scotts  Kings,  through  the 
quihilk  this  ile  hes  been  richly  dotat  be  the  Scotts  Kinges,  as  we 
have  said. 

''The  tombe  on  the  South  side  aforesaid,  has  this  inscription, 
Tumulus  Regum  Hibemice^  that  is,  the  tombe  of  the  Irland  Kingis  ; 
for  we  have  in  our  auld  Erische  cronikells,  that  ther  were  four 
Irland  Kingis  erdit  in  the  same  tombe. 

**  Upon  the  north  syde  of  our  Scottes  tombe,  the  inscription  bears, 
Tumulus  Regum  Norwcgio^^ — that  is,  the  tombe  of  the  Kings  of 
1  Fergus,  a.i>.  536.    St.  Columba  lauded,  563.    Died,  597. 


ROYAL  TOMBS.  89 

Korroway.  And  als'  we  find  in  our  Erische  cronikells,  that  Caelus, 
King  of  Norroway,  commandit  his  nobils  to  take  his  bodey  and 
buiey  it  in  Colm  Kill,  if  it  chancit  him  to  die  in  the  ilea ;  hot  he 
was  so  discomfitit,  that-  ther  remained  not  so  maney  of  his  army  as 
wald  burey  him  ther,  therefor  he  was  eirdet  in  Kyles,  after  he  stroke 
ane  field  against  the  Scotts,  and  was  vanquisht  be  them. 

**  Within  this  sanctuary  also  lye  the  maist  pairt  of  the  Lords  of  the 
lies,  with  their  lynage,  twa  dan  Leans,  with  their  lynage,  Mac 
Kynnon  and  Mac  Quarrie,  with  their  lynage,  with  sundrie  uthers 
inhabitants^of  the  haill  isles,  because  this  Sanctuary  was  wont  to  be 
the  sepulture  of  the  best  men  of  all  the  iles,  and  als'  of  our  Kinges, 
as  we  have  said,  because  it  was  the  maist  honourable  and  ancient 
place  that  was  in  Scotland." 

Kow  all  trace  of  the  chapels  has  vanished,  and  the  kingly  dust 
has  mixed  itself  with  common  clay,  without  even  the  distinction  of 
such  beautifully  carved  stones  as  mark  the  graves  of  abbots  and 
warriors — stones  inscribed  with  figures  of  the  chase  or  emblems  of 
life  on  land  and  sea — knights  in  full  armour  with  long  two-handed 
8 words,  or  ecclesiastics  in  their  robes  and  mitres.  One  stone  is 
shown  (of  red  unpolished  granite,  marked  only  with  a  rudely  cut 
cross),  beneath  which  sleeps  a  nameless  King  of  France,  of  whom 
tradition  avers  that  he  was  compelled  to  abdicate  the  crown,  and 
then  retreated  to  this  isle  to  find  a  last  resting-place  among  Macleods 
and  Macleans,  Mackinnons,  Macquarries,  and  Macdonalds. 

Of  the  360  Crosses,  only  two  now'  remain  quite  intact,  namely, 
one  dedicated  to  St  Martin,  which  stands  near  the  entrance  of  the 
Cathedral  enclosure.  It  is  a  round-headed  cross  of  grey  stone, 
covered  with  Eunic  knotting,  and  some  saintly  figures.  It  stands 
fourteen  feet  high,  and  has  been  raised  on  a  pedestal  of  red  granite 
three  feet  in  height. 

The  other  is  a  beautifully  carved  old  cross,  known  as  '^  Mac- 
lean's." It  stands  beside  the  ruined  causeway  which  bears  the 
name  of  Martyr  Street,  and  leads  from  the  sea  to  the  Cathedral — a 
paved  way  along  which  many  a  sad  procession  has  passed,  bearing 
the  dead  to  theit  last  resting-place. 

When  the  dead  were  carried  ashore  in  the  Martyrs'  Bay,  they 


90  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

were  laid  on  the  green  hillock  of  Eala,  the  Mound  of  the  Burden, 
round  which  the  funeral  company  thrice  marched  sunwise  in  solemn 
procession,  as  they  had  been  wont  to  do  from  time  immemorial,  in 
common  with  many  races,  both  ancient  and  modem,  in  all  parts  of 
the  world.     I  do  not  suppose  this  custom  is  even  now  wholly 
extinct,  for  even  on  the  more .  ad vanced  mainland,  the  path  to  a 
churchyard  is  often  led  circuitously,  so  as  to  ensure  the  corpse  being 
carried  in  the  orthodox  sunwise  course,  and  the  people  strongly 
oppose  any  short  cut,  which  would  interfere  with  this  beneficial 
circuit. 

At  the  green  mound,  the  dead  were  sometimes  waked  for  three 
days  and  nights,  with  singing  of  psalms  and  wild  wailing  coronachs, 
ere  they  were  borne,  slowly  and  sadly,  with  bitter  lamentation, 
along  the  **  Street  of  the  Dead  "  and  through  "  the  narrow  way  "  to 
the  place  prepared  for  them  in  Eeilig  Orain,  there  to  be  laid  mid 
kindred  dust.  But  only  the  lords  of  the  creation  were  allowed  a 
place  of  rest  on  the  Holy  Isle,  for  I  grieve  to  say  that  Columba  was 
a  very  unchivalrous  saint,  who  guarded  the  strict  and  severe  sanctity 
of  his  isle  so  jealously  that  he  would  not  sufEer  womankind  to  set 
foot  thereon ;  nay,  forbade  even  cattle  on  their  account,  because,  he 
said,  "  Where  there  is  a  cow  there  must  be  a  woman,  and  where 
there  is  a  woman  there  must  be  mischief ! "  So  such  tradesmen 
and  labourers  as  were  indispensable  to  the  monastic  community,  and 
80  had  to  live  on  the  isle,  and  yet  insisted  on  having  wives,  were 
obliged  to  keep  them  on  a  neighbouring  islet,  called  the  Woman's 
Isle. 

Even  in  death  Columba  would  not  suflfer  feminine  dust  to  rest 
on  this  holy  ground  ;  nor  could  even  the  Lords  of  the  Isles  obtain 
a  little  space  where  they  might  lay  their  wives  and  their  little  ones. 
Consequently  while  they  themselves  were  buried  in  lona  with  all 
due  ceremony,  these  lesser  creatures  were  always  taken  to  the  Isle 
of  Finlagan. 

After  a  while,  however,  the  women  carried  the  day.  They 
approached  the  sacred  ground  with  caution.  First  a  little  company 
of  religious  women  established  themselves  on  an  islet  in  the  neigh- 
bourhood, called  "  The  Isle  of  Nun6."    Thence,  after  awhile,  muster- 


HISTORY  OP  lONA.  91 

ing  courage,  tbey  passed  on  to  lona  itself,  where  tlie  Ganoness  of 
St.  Augustine  established  a  nunnery,  or  rather  a  priory  of  Austin 
nuns,  in  which,  doubtless,  the  fair  daughters  of  the  land  lived  lives 
to  the  full  as  holy  as  the  holy  brethren.  Their  dress  was  a  white 
robe,  over  which  they  wore  a  rochet  of  fine  linen. 

Within  their  chapel  is  the  tomb  of  Anna,  the  last  Prioress, 
dated  a.d.  1511,  and  bearing  an  inscription  in  Saxon  character. 

The  ruins  of  this  nunnery  are  our  first  object  of  attraction  on 
landing.  Its  very  plain  rounded  arches  indicate  its  date  as  being 
of  about  the  12th  century,  which  is  also  the  date  of  the  oldest  part 
of  the  present  Cathedral,  or  Abbey  Church  of  St.  Mary,  which, 
however,  was  not  finished  till  later.  It  is  a  cruciform  building, 
having  a  square  tower  about  seventy  feet  high,  rising  from  the 
point  where  the  transept  intersects  the  nave.  From  north  to  south, 
the  transepts  measure  about  seventy  feet,  while  the  whole  length 
of  the  building  is  about  a  hundred  and  fifty  feet,  but  a  partition 
waU,  dividing  the  chancel,  destroys  any  effect  of  si^e. 

The  present  roofless  ruin  is  all  that  remains  of  the  monastic 
establishment,  here  planted  by  the  Irish  Bishops,  who,  in  the  year 
A.D.  1203,  placed  lona  under  the  role  of  the  Abbot  of  Derry.  Till 
this  date,  it  was  retained  by  the  Fathers  of  the  Culdee  Church, 
who  although  burnt  out  and  pillaged,  over  and  over  again  (their 
monastery  being  finally  destroyed  in  1059)  yet  clung  to  the  pos- 
session of  the  Isle  till  the  Koman  Church  was  built.  Then  the 
Culdees  finally  abandoned  the  Isle,  and  the  Clugniac  monks  held 
it  in  undisputed  possession.  It  was  at  this  time  that  the  nunnery 
was  here  established.  About  the  end  of  the  15th  century,  lona 
became  the  seat  of  the  Bishop  of  the  Isles,  and  the  Abbey  Church 
became  his  centre  for  ecclesiastical  work. 

Stormy  and  troublous  times  indeed  were  those  during  which  his 
predecessors  so  perseveringly  held  their  ground.^     Again  and  agai|i 

^  Pennant  states  that  during  the  period  of  two  hundred  years,  when  the 
Norwegians  held  sway  in  the  Isles,  the  Bishops  of  lona  were  consecrated  in 
the  grand  old  Cathedral  Church  of  St.  Olaf  at  Trondhjem  in  Norway,  and 
included  Norwegians,  Frenchmen,  Scotch,  and  English.  The  Archbishop  of 
Trondhjem  was  in  fact  Metropolitan  of  all  the  Highlands  and  Western  Isles, 
of  Sodor  and  Man,  and  of  Orkney,  and  retained  the  ecclesiastical  supremacy 


92  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

were  their  homes  laid  waste,  and  their  lives  jeopardized  by  the 
incursions  of  savage  Danes  and  Norsemen.  Four  times  between 
the  years  a.d.  795  and  825  was  the  Isle  ravaged  and  the  Monastery 
burnt  by  the  fierce  Norsemen  who,  in  806,  barbarously  massacred 
sixty-eight  members  of  the  brotherhood,  '  *  The  family  of  lona." 
Their  martyrdom  is  commemorated  by  the  name  of  the  peaceful 
little  Bay  of  Martyrs,  and  the  street  leading  thence.  Only  think 
what  a  life  of  continual  anxiety  was  that  of  the  brethren,  never 
knowing  whether  the  strange  galleys  that  approached  their  shores 
were  those  of  reverent  pilgrims  or  ruthless  pirates.  We  do  not 
however  hear  of  further  massacres,  till  a.d.  986,  when,  on  Christmas 
Eve,  the  savage  Norsemen  made  another  descent,  murdering  the 
Abbot  and  fifteen  of  his  monks. 

It  was  after  this  that  Queen  Margaret  rebuilt  the  Chapel  of  St. 
Oran — a  tiny  and  insignificant-looking  place  it  seems  to  us,  but 
one  to  which  assuredly  some  unwonted  influence  was  attached,  for 
we  hear  how,  when  a  few  years  later,  Magnus  Barefoot  landed  here 
with  his  wild  hordes,  he  was  the  first  to  enter  the  chapel,  but,  awe- 
stricken,  he  started  back,  and  closing  the  door,  commanded  that  the 
place  and  the  people  should  be  left  undisturbed. 

Sad  to  say,  the  sacred  ground  which  even  barbarians  thus 
reverenced,  has  been  ruthlessly  pillaged  by  modem  Goths.  Half 
the  houses  in  the  **  Baile  Mor,"  the  *^  great  town  "  of  lona,  are  said 
to  have  been  built  of  materials  quarried  from  the  ecclesiastical 
ruins,  and  many  of  the  beautiful  sculptured  gravestones,  which 
marked  the  tombs  of  abbots  and  of  kings,  were  plundered  and 
carried  off  to  many  a  graveyard  on  other  isles,  or  on  the  mainland, 
there  to  do  honour  to  some  humble  mortal,  unknown  to  fame.  Ere 
they  were  scattered,  a  Mr.  Frazier,  who  visited  lona  in  a.d.  1688, 
collected  three  hundred  inscriptions,  which  he  presented  to  the 
Earl  of  Argyle,  but  these  have  unfortunately  been  lost. 

Even  the  altar,  which  was  of  white  marble,  veined  with  grey,^  has 

till  the  close  of  the  14tb  century,  or  evea^later— probably  till  the  15th  century, 
when  St.  Andrews  was  created  an  Archbishopric. 

^  Supposed  by  Pennant  to  have  been  quarried  at  Kilchrist  in  the  parbh  of 
Strath,  Isle  of  Skye. 


THE  CULDEE    CHTTRCH.  93 

been  carried  off,  though  it  was  still  in  its  place  in  1772,  at  which 
period  there  were  also  some  remains  of  the  Bishop's  Palace,  which 
Sacheyerell,  writing  in  1688,  describes  as  ^  a  large  hall,  open  to 
the  roof  of  a  chamber,"  into  which  he  supposes  it  must  have  been 
necessary  to  ascend  by  a  ladder.  Under  this  chamber  was  a  buttery, 
the  offices  being  probably  outside,  as  was  customary. 

The  Abbot's  house  stood  to  the  westward. 

According  to  the  custom  of  the  Culdee  Church,'  both  in  Scotland 
and  Ireland,  lona  was  ruled  by  a  Presbyter- Abbot,  to  whom  was 
committed  the  entire  jurisdiction  in  the  province  ;  the  Bishop  him- 
self being  subject  to  the  Abbot,  and  retaining  little  distinctive  pre- 
cedence, except  in  the  celebration  of  Divine  service,  and  in  the 
exercise  of  such  unquestionably  episcopal  functions  as  ordination. 
In  the  case  of  lona,  this  system  was  attributed  by  Bede  to  "  the 
example  of  that  first  teacher  of  theirs,  who  was  no  Bishop,  but  a 
Presbyter  and  Monk." 

The  inmates  of  the  monastery  were  inferior  orders  of  presbyters 
and  deacons,  all  the  monks  being  ordained  clergy,  to  whom  the 
monastery  was  but  a  central  clergy-house,  whence  they  went  forth, 
as  occasion  offered^  to  preach  in  the  semi-pagan  regions  round 
about 

The  •*  Baile  Mor  "  to  which  I  referred  just  now,  consists  of  a 
row  of  about  forty-six  cottages,  forming  the  '' Straide,"  t.e.  the 
Street,  and  containing  a  population  of  two  hundred  and  forty 
persons — a  little  flock,  which  here,  as  everywhere  in  Scotland  in 
these  modem  days,  is  divided  into  the  adherents  of  the  Free  and 

1  The  name  of  Coldee  Is  supposed  to  be  of  Celtic  derivation,  meaning  in  old 
Irish  **  attendant  on  God."  Another  Celtic  derivation  gives  the  meaning  as 
^  men  of  seclusion."  Writers  in  the  16th  century  derive  it  from  Cultores 
Dei,  "  Worshippers  of  God."  There  was  a  Bishop  in  the  North  of  Ireland 
about  A  D.  800,  known  as  Magw  the  Ceile-De,  by  reason  of  his  great  holiness. 

In  A.  p.  843  Brude,  son  of  Dergand,  last  King  of  the  Picts,  gave  the  Island 
in  Loch  Leven,  now  called  St  Serf's  Isle,  to  God,  St  Servan,  and  the  Culdee 
hermits  serving  God  there. 

There  were  at  least  dght  religious  houses  in  Ireland  called  Culdees,  one  of 
which,  at  Armagh,  survived  till  the  beginning  of  the  17th  century.  It  was 
described  as  "  a  college  of  secular  priests,  living  in  community." 


94  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

the  Established  Church,  each  of  which  is  represented  by  a  Church 
and  a  pastor.  The  Free  Church  minister  now  lives  across  the 
Straits,  on  the  Isle  of  Mull,  having  given  up  his  manse  to  be  con- 
verted into  a  simple  but  cosy  little  inn,  where  a  true  pilgrim  (not 
content  to  ''  do  "  lona  and  Staffa  as  hurried  incidents  in  the  course 
of  one  long  day's  excursion  from  Oban)  can  halt,  and  spend  days 
of  delight  in  the  reverent  and  leisurely  study  of  its  hallowed  ground, 
much  of  which  he  would  fain  traverse  on  his  knees — at  least 
figuratively  I 

Mere  tourists  who  do  the  round  trip  in  a  day,  of  course  only  get 
about  one  hour  on  each  isle — ^just  time  to  run  round  helter-skelter 
from  point  to  point,  rushing  with  breathless  speed  in  pursuit  of  a 
guide,  who  rapidly  pours  forth  his  concentrated  history  of  each 
spot  ere  he  hurries  on  to  the  next  point — a  history  which  they  may 
digest  at  leisure,  when  they  once  more  rush  on  board,  feeling  surely 
very  much  like  over-fed  turkeys  on  escaping  from  the  clutches  of  a 
merciless  crammer. 

The  velocity  of  their  meal,  however,  depends  a  good  deal  on  the 
season  of  the  year ;  in  other  words,  on  the  number  of  sheep  which 
the  steamer  may  have  to  carry  from  isle  to  isle,  to  or  from  their 
winter  pastures  ;  so  that  perhaps  in  the  height  of  summer  the  halt 
may  be  somewhat  more  leisurely.  And  indeed,  I  am  bound  to 
confess  that  I  felt  I  had  wasted  a  good  deal  of  compassion  on  the 
unhappy  tourist  flock  when  I  noticed  how  many  of  them  found 
time  to  spend  fully  half  their  allotted  hour  on  the  Holy  Isle  in 
eating  and  drinking,  which  they  might  as  well  have  done  on 
board  ! 

But  in  any  case,  such  visitors  can  by  no  possibility  explore  any- 
thing beyond  the  actual  monastery,  whereas  to  all  lovers  of  old  lore, 
there  are  places  of  very  great  interest  in  various  parts  of  the  island. 
I  earnestly  recommend  all  such,  to  allow  themselves  a  few  days  on 
the  Isle,  days  of  such  unbroken  peace  as  can  rarely  be  obtained  at 
kindred  sites.  There  is  a  charm  even  in  the  name  of  the  little  inn. 
Fancy  being  welcomed  to  St.  Columba's  Arms  !  To  such  as  can 
appreciate  the  excellence  and  abundance  of  dairy  produce,  the  bowls 
of  creamy  milk  and  snowy  curds  are  an  attraction  in  themselves. 


THE  CATHEDBAL  JACKDAWS.  95 

Such  fresh  floury  scones  too,  haked  hy  the  most  motherly  of  High- 
land landladies  I  Who  would  not  he  a  pilgrim  to  lona  to  share 
snch  fare  1  Nevertheless  neither  fish,  flesh,  nor  fowl  are  lacking 
for  such  as  prefer  more  varied  diet. 

The  little  inn  stands  within  a  stone's- throw  of  the  ruins — those 
once  hospitahle  walls  to  which  all  comers  were  welcomed,  hut 
where  now  only  a  few  sheep  hrowse  peacefully,  while  a  colony  of 
jackdaws  find  shelter  in  the  crannies  of  the  great  Cathedral  Tower. 
The  Islanders  have  divers  superstitions  ahout  these  hirds,  which 
they  would  on  no  account  molest.  They  maintain  that  since  the 
days  of  Columha  they  have  claimed  a  home  in  his  monastery,  and 
that  their  numhers  have  never  either  increased  or  decreased,  hut 
that  they  are  uncanny  hirds,  and  know  many  things. 

I  confess  I  was  sometimes  tempted  myself  to  agree  with  the 
latter  clause,  for  there  was  something  strangely  weird  in  tlie  way 
they  guarded  the  old  place,  and  resented  the  approach  of  human 
footsteps.  Again  and  again  I  tried  the  experiment  of  whether  I 
could  not  enter  the  sacred  precincts  under  cover  of  night  without 
arousing  these  vigilant  hirds,  hut  invariahly  failed.  I  might 
wander  wherever  I  pleased  outside  their  domain,  though  within  an 
easy  stone's-throw,  btU  the  moment  I  stepped  within  the  gate,  how 
noiselessly  soever  I  entered,  the  watchful  sentinel  sounded  the  alarm. 

As  I  stood  motionless  in  the  deep  shadow  of  the  tower  I  could 
see  him  going  his  rounds,  to  waken  the  colony,  who  seemed  to  he 
sleepily  remonstrating  at  heing  thus  disturbed,  and  very  much 
disposed  to  return  to  their  slumbers,  hut  the  instant  I  ventured  to 
move  so  much  as  a  hand,  the  whole  body  started  up  with  angry, 
querulous  cawing,  and  after  an  instant  of  noisy  confusion  formed 
themselves  into  a  close  phalanx,  a  corps  of  observation,  intent  on 
watching  every  movement  of  the  invader.  Thenceforth  not  a  cry 
was  uttered,  but  in  total  silence  this  black  cloud  of  witnesses  swept 
backwards  and  forwards  athwart  the  dark  sky ;  no  sound  save  that 
of  multitudinous  rushing  of  wings,  which,  like  a  blast  of  wind, 
one  moment  came  sweeping  close  above  my  head,  the  next  seemed 
to  vanish  into  space,  losing  itself  in  the  darkness,  and  anon  return- 
ing,— at  intervals  of  a  couple  of  minutes  — most  eerie  and  ghostlike! 


96  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

Often  I  tried  to  deceive  them  by  moving  rapidly  along  under 
cover  of  some  dark  wall  or  row  of  tall  columns,  but  it  was  quite 
useless  ;  the  dark  cloud  returned,  straight  as  the  flight  of  an  arrow, 
not  to  the  place  where  they  had  left  the  foe,  but  direct  to  the  spot 
where  I  then  stood.  This  invariably  went  on  as  long  as  I  stood 
within  the  Cathedral  walls.  The  very  moment  I  stepped  beyond 
it,  the  cawing  recommenced,  and  continued  while  the  black,  living 
cloud,  once  more  settled  down  on  the  ruined  tower,  and  composed 
itself  to  sleep,  not  caring  how  long  I  might  linger  in  the  Eeilig 
Orain,  the  sacred  enclosure  round  St.  Oran's  Chapel,  where  sleep 
the  kings,  and  saints,  and  warriors  of  old. 

Very  cold  and  still  lay  those  sculptured  effigies,  showing  as  clear 
in  the  bright  moonlight  as  at  midday,  nevertheless  gaining  from 
that  soft  reflected  light,  something  of  the  mystery  and  peaceful 
calm,  which  is  ever  lacking  in  the  glare  of  noon. 

One  lovely  walk  in  the  early  summer  morning,  is  up  the  green 
hill  of  Dunii,  which  though  little  more  than  300  feet  in  height,  is 
nevertheless  the  highest  point  of  the  island,  which  thence  appears 
outspread,  map-like,  before  us,  while  on  every  side,  as  far  as  eye 
can  reach,  the  sea  is  dotted  with  countless  islands,  changing  colour 
with  the  varying  play  of  light,  as  showery  cloud  or  glittering 
rainbow  float  over  them,  transforming  'cool  pearly  greys  into  living 
opaL 

"  Dark  Ulva's  Isle,"  the  distant  peaks  of  Jura,  and  Inch  Kenneth 
claim  our  glance  by  turns,  the  latter — ^the  Innis-Kenneth — having  a 
special  interest,  on  account  of  its  ecclesiastical  ruins  :  here  for  many 
centuries  stood  a  college,  dependent  on  lona.  Beside  the  altar  in 
its  little  ruined  chapel  is  a  sculptured  bas-relief  of  the  Blessed 
Virgin,  and  all  around  are  scattered  a  multitude  of  graves,  on  which 
are  carved  effigies  of  knights  and  ladies. 

Facing  us,  across  the  narrow  strait,  rise  the  gte&t  hills  of  MuU, 
which,  piled  up  in  grand  mountain  masses,  rise  from  behind  the 
Boss  of  Mull — a  huge  rampart  of  red  granite,  contrasting  strongly 
in  colour  with  the  clear  aquamarine  tints  of  the  sea,  toned  here  and 
there  to  richest  purple  by  the  great  beds  of  brown  sea-ware,  which 
lie  hidden  beneath  the  water,  themselves  unseen,  yet  none  the  less 


'THE  TABERNACLE  OF  THE  CULDEES/        97 

doing  their  part  in  that  beautiful  picture^  and  whispering  a  nature- 
parable  on  hidden  influences. 

A  little  further,  the  same  sea  is  blue  as  the  sky  which  it  reflects 
— ^nay,  bluer  by  some  tones— a  fair  setting  for  the  Holy  Isle,  with 
its  long  reaches  of  pure  white  shell  sand,  which  gleam  dazzlingly 
in  the  sunlight ;  and  the  eye  hails  the  rich  green  grass  and  banks 
of  delicious  white  clover  and  wild  thyme  which  grows  so  luxuriantly 
wherever  this  white  lime  sand  can  find  its  way,  and  indeed  all  over 
the  Machars  (as  these  sandy  reaches  are  called).  Looking  down 
from  our  green  hill-top,  on  this  scene  of  so  many  historic  associations, 
it  needed  but  a  little  play  of  fancy  to  pass  over  the  intervening 
twelve  centuries  and  call  up  visions  of  that  old  life,  when  in  place 
of  the  solidly-built  Cathedral,  the  ruins  of  which  lie  before  us, 
there  existed  but  a  few  humble  cells,  clustering  round  a  lowly 
chapel — a  chapel,  however,  which  exerted  a  mightier  and  more 
extended  influence  tlian  falls  to  the  lot  of  many  of  the  world's 
stateliest  churches. 

As  a  matter  of  course,  to  any  one  versed  in  the  lore  of  the  past, 
every  comer  of  this  Isle  seems  haunted  byihe  spirits  of  Druids  and 
Culdees,  and  the  points  of  special  attraction  are  those  to  which 
attaches  some  dream  of  olden  days. 

My  favourite  evening  stroll  was  a  solitary  expedition  across  the 
moor  towards  the  western  side  of  the  Isle,  to  the  wildest  rocky 
▼alley,  where  a  small  circle  of  stones  is  still  dear  to  the  islanders,  as 
the  Cappan  Cuildich,  or  Tabernacle  of  the  Culdees,  for  here,  they  say, 
it  was,  that  the  Standard  of  the  Cross  was  first  planted,  and  that  the 
little  band  of  Christians  were  wont  to  assemble  in  secret,  to  worship 
after  the  new  £E»hion  taught  them  by  these  strange  Missionaries. 

The  circle  was,  however,  probably  of  older  date  still ;  its  avenue 
of  carefully-placed  stones  seems  rather  to  belong  to  the  buildings 
we  call  Druidic,  and  whether  as  temple  or  tomb,  was  probably 
associated  with  the  earlier  form  of  worship.  The  mysterious  gloom 
of  this  lonely  glen  seemed  well  in  keeping  with  both  traditions.  I 
generally  found  my  way  there  just  as  the  closing  day  left  the  valley 
in  deep  shadow,  often  made  darker  still  by  heavy  clouds  overhead, 
which,  closing  in,  carried  the  eye  onward,  to  where  the  sea  and 

H 


98  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

far  away  isles  lay  bathed  in  lurid  snnset  light.  Not  a  sound  was 
there  to  break  the  deep  stillness  of  the  hour,  save  when  the  shrill 
cry  of  the  curlew,  or  the  wail  of  some  lonely  sea-bird,  woke  the 
echoes  for  one  little  moment,  only  to  be  succeeded  by  silence  more 
intense. 

Eetuming  thence  in  the  deepening  twilight,  I  loved  to  rest  awhile 
on  the  green  hillock  overlooking  the  old  monastery — the  Tor  Ab, 
8t.  Columba's  favourite  seat, — there  to  dream  awhile  of  all  the 
changing  scenes  that  have  been,  as  it  were,  dissolving  views, 
successively  taking  form  for  a  little  season,  during  the  course  of 
ages  unnumbered.  Soon  a  golden  glow  in  the  eastern  sky  told 
that  the  great  yellow  moon  was  about  to  rise  behind  the  hills  of 
Mull ;  another  moment,  and  the  old  Cathedral  stood  out  in  deepened 
shadow  against  the  rippling  silver  of  the  intervening  straits — those 
narrow  straits,  across  which  the  brethren  of  the  monastery  used  to 
ferry  such  pilgrims  as  had  performed  the  weary  journey  on  foot, 
across  the  rugged  mountains. 

One  more  point  of  great  interest  on  the  Isle  is  the  Port-na- 
Churraich,  or  Harbour  of  the  Boat,  the  spot  were  St  Columba  and 
his  brethren  are  said  to  have  buried  the  frail  corracle  of  wicker 
covered  with  hides,  in  which  they  sailed  hither, — ^lest  they  should 
ever  be  tempted  to  return  to  their  beloved  Ireland.  Ere  taking  this 
final  step  they  cHmbed  the  neighbouring  hill  to  ascertain  that  the 
Emerald  Isle  was  no  longer  even  in  sight ;  hence  the  name  of  that 
hill  is  to  this  day  the  Cairn-cul-n'-Erin,  denoting  that  henceforth 
they  had  turned  their  backs  for  ever  on  Erin's  shore. 

Wishing  to  visit  this  point  by  water,  so  as  to  miss  none  of  the 
beauty  of  the  many-coloured  rocks  which  lie  on  the  south  side  of 
the  isle,  I  chartered  a  boat  intending  to  row  thither,  dose  along  the 
coast.  The  weather  hitherto  had  been  so  faultless  that  any  imme- 
diate change  seemed  impossible,  and  the  dull  grey  clouds  on  the 
horizon  spoke  their  warning  so  vainly,  that  I  made  no  objection 
when  the  boatmen  proceeded  to  hoist  a  sail.  Clumsily  in  truth 
they  did  it,  yet  it  was  not  till  we  were  fairly  under  way  that  I 
realized  that  their  unsteadiness  was  due  to  having  been  over  well 
ti'eated  by  their  friends  on  board  the  steamboat^  which  had  called 


THE  BAT  OF  THE  BOAT.  99 

that  momingy  and  in  fact  that  the  barley  biee  had  done  its  work 
pretty  effectually,  as  was  proven  by  the  volubility  with  which  they 
aigned  and  wrangled  in  Gaelic— an  altercation,  in  an  unknown 
tongue,  being  at  all  times  particularly  unpleasant  to  the  unwilling 
ears  that  have  to  endure  it. 

Meanwhile  the  wind  was  rapidly  freshening,  and  a  heavy  swell 
setting  in,  so  that,  instead  of  keeping  sufficiently  near  the  shore  to 
distinguish  its  peculiarities,  we  spent  the  afternoon  in  making  long 
and  wearisome  tracks,  and  by  the  time  we  reached  our  destination 
the  waves  had  grown  so  angry  that  landing  at  all  was  a  matter  of 
considerable  difficulty. 

Once  ashore,  I  deemed  it  more  prudent  and  pleasant  to  find  my 
way  home  alone,  across  the  moor,  greatly  to  the  dismay  of  my  boat- 
men, whose  chivalry  was  not  so  clouded  by  their  potations  as  to  let 
them  be  willing  to  desert  their  charge  in  so  wild  a  place.  I  am 
sure  their  minds  were  greatly  relieved  when,  in  the  evening,  on 
returning  to  the  Baile  Mor  (the  great  town)  they  found  me  safe  in 
my  usual  comfortable  quarters,  and  it  certainly  was  a  relief  to  me 
to  know  that  they  had  arrived  in  safety,  which,  when  I  left  them, 
seemed  highly  problematic. 

The  spot  on  which  we,  like  the  Celtic  fathers,  landed,  is  a  small 
bay,  closed  in  by  great  rocks  of  gneiss— certainly  not  much  of  a 
harbour,  to  judge  from  the  violence  with  which  the  great  waves 
sweep  in  and  dash  themselves  upon  the  beach — a  beach  composed 
wholly  of  hillocks  of  shingle,  consisting  chiefly  of  green  quartz  and 
serpentine,  and  red  felspar,  all  glittering  like  jewels  when  wet  with 
mist  and  spray ;  very  pretty  too  look  at,  but  most  unpleasant  to 
scramble  over. 

These  pebbles  have  ever  been  valued  by  pilgrims  as  charms,  or  at 
any  rate  as  portable  and  interesting  relics,  so  the  children  make 
occasional  expeditions  across  the  Isle,  and  collect  stores  of  the 
brightest,  which  they  ofier  for  sale  to  the  steamboat  passengers,  as 
memorials  of  their  short  hour  on  lona.  Sometimes  large  glossy 
seeds,  brought  by  the  Gulf  Stream  from  their  birthplace  in  the 
tropics,  are  here  washed  ashore,  and  great  is  the  luck  that  awaits 
the  finder  of  one  of  these  precious  lona  beans. 

H  2 


100  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

In  the  middle  of  this  stony  expanse  lies  one  small  grassy  hillock, 
just  the  shape  of  a  boat  lying  keel  uppermost ;  and,  curiously 
enough,  corresponding  in  size  to  the  measurements  of  St.  Columba's 
Curragh.  This  is  the  place  where  it  is  supposed  to  be  buried,  and 
the  only  spot  where  (doubtless  out  of  compliment  to  the  Emerald 
Isle)  the  grass  contrives  to  grow. 

A  little  further,  and  far  above  reach  of  the  highest  tide,  the 
shingle  is  heaped  up  into  innumerable  great  cairns,  said  to  have 
been  piled,  stone  by  stone,  by  penitents  working  on  their  knees,  in 
expiation  of  divers  crimes.  A  more  painful  and  wearisome  form  of 
treadmill  could  hardly  be  devised  than  that  of  which  these  heaps 
are  still  the  tokens. 

Turning  away  from  this  dreary  scene,  for  once  sympathizing  with 
Montalembert's  colourless  description  of  the  grey  and  misty  Hebri- 
dean  sea,  and  cold  inhospitable  shores,  I  made  the  best  of  my  way 
across  the  hills  towards  the  cathedral,  guided  by  the  position  of  the 
neighbouring  islands,  the  near  green  hills  being  nowhere  so  high  as 
to  conceal  the  sea  for  long. 

The  storm  was  gathering  fast,  and  a  cold  chilling  blast  would 
scarcely  snffer  me  to  linger  a  moment  at  the  Pit-an-druidh,  the  cairn 
which  marks  the  burial-place  of  Columba's  predecessors.  An  old 
man  who  ''had  the  English''  in  addition  to  his  Gaelic  mother 
tongue,  told  me  that  he  had  seen  this  grave  opened  by  men  who 
doubted  the  tradition,  and  that  sure  enough  they  had  found  a  great 
heap  of  human  bones,  all  of  which  were  reverently  replaced.  It 
was  well,  however,  to  have  found  this  tangible  proof  of  the  actual 
presence  of  men,  whose  shadowy  memory  has  been  almost  wholly 
lost  in  the  dim  mist  of  ages.  1  felt,  while  standing  beside  those 
lonely  graves,  that  there  was  something  strangely  in  keeping  with 
their  desolation,  in  the  wild  wailing  of  the  sobbing  wind,  which 
seemed  to  echo  the  dirge-like  moaning  of  the  sullen  waves,  as  if 
murmuring  a  solemn  requiem  for  the  forgotten  dead. 

Near  this  place  stands  the  only  cottage  still  remaining  on  the 
Isle,  with  the  old-fashioned  fire-place  hollowed  in  the  centre  of  the 
earthen  floor,  and  with  no  chimney  except  a  hole  in  the  middle  of 
the  roof.     Its  inmates  gave  me  cordial  welcome,  my  old  friend  who 


A  CENTRAL  HEABTH.  101 

**  had  the  English  "  heing  the  gade-man  of  the  house,  so  he  heaped 
on  fresh  peats,  and  invited  me  to  sit  awhile  and  chat  beside  the 
cheeiy  blaze.  He  pointed  out  the  manifold  advantages  of  a  fire- 
place tbat  allowed  of  no  monopoly,  but  round  which  the  whole 
family  could  always  gather,  and  as  to  the  idea  of  any  extra  danger 
being  involved,  he  could  only  say  he  had  reared  as  promising  a 
brood  as  any  father  could  desire,  and  no  accident  had  ever  befallen 
his  hearth.  As  to  the  smoke,  they  were  used  to  it,  and  really  had 
little  more  than  their  neighbours,  whose  wide  chimneys  let  in  as 
much  cold  air  as  they  let  out  smoke.  So  you  see  a  central  fire  has 
its  advantages  even  in  domestic  life.^ 

In  former  days  it  was  convenient  in  some  other  respects,  to  which 
the  good  old  man  did  not  care  to  allude — old  pagan  customs  which 
were  faithfully  observed  for  many  a  century  by  those  who  were 
rery  good  Christians  in  the  main ;  such  as  walking  solemnly  round 
the  fire,  or  leaping  across  its  flames.  One  of  the  most  remarkable 
customs  of  this  class,  which  was  kept  up  in  parte  of  the  Highlands 
till  certainly  the  beginning  of  this  century,  was  that  of  taking  a 
newly  baptized  child,  and  handing  it  across  the  fire  to  some  person 
opposite  ;  or  else,  its  father  would  take  the  child  in  his  arms  and 
leap  across  the  heartL  This  was  done  thrice,  the  child  being  thus 
made  to  pass  through  the  flames,  in  truly  Moloch-ian  or  Baal-istic 
form.  After  the  ceremony  each  person  present  took  three  spoon- 
fuls of  meal  and  water,  or  something  stronger. 

Sometimes  the  child  was  placed  in  a  basket,  covered  with  a  white 
cloth,  and  cheese  and  oat-cake  being  placed  beside  it,  the  basket 
was  suspended  from  the  crook  in  the  fire-place,  which  was  moved 
round  thrice  sun-wise.  Moreover,  every  person  entering  the  house, 
was  required  to  take  up  a  burning  fire-brand  from  the  hearth,  and 
therewith  cross  himself,  before  he  ventured  to  approach  a  new-bom 
child  or  its  mother.  It  was  also  customary  to  carry  a  burning  peat 
Bun-wise  round  an  unbaptized  infant  and  its  mother,  to  protect 
them  from  evil  spirits. 

I  This  central  place  of  honour  ]b  stiD  reserved  for  the  hearth  in  most  cottages 
OD  the  Long  Island.  The  people  aay  it  keeps  the  house  warmer,  and  the  amoke 
answera  the  aame  purpose  ! 


102  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

These  customs  seem  to  have  fonned  part  of  the  ceremony  to 
vhich  Pope  Gregory  alluded,  when  speaking  of  Pagan  baptism — a 
ceremony  in  which  both  fire  and  water  were  employed  by  the 
Druids  in  honour  of  Neith,  their  goddess  of  waters. 

When  I  left  the  cottage,  the  darkness  was  falling  fast,  but  I  soon 
struck  a  familiar  track,  and  was  not  sorry  once  more  to  find  myself 
safe  in  the  cosy  little  inn.  That  night  there  was  no  moonlight 
visit  to  the  jackdaws  or  to  the  ghostly  kings.  Such  boats  as  had 
put  out  to  sea  were  hurrying  home,  and  the  fishers  were  preparing 
for  foul  weather.  All  night  long  the  waves  roared,  and  the  winds 
raved  and  shook  the  shutterless  windows  till  we  were  fain  to  own 
that  the  name  of  Ithona,  the  Isle  of  Waves,  was  as  just  a  descrip- 
tion as  Ishona,  the  Blessed  Isle,  which  hitherto  we  had  believed  to 
be  the  name  most  suitable  to  so  calm  and  peaceful  a  retreat. 

But  with  the  dawn  the  angry  waves  were  hushed,  and  the  sea 
that  had  been  churned  like  yeast  gradually  subsided,  only  heaving 
as  though  still  sullen,  till  at  length,  as  if  exhausted  with  its  own 
passion,  it  once  more  lay  still,  and  calm,  and  smiling,  breaking  in 
tiny  ripples  on  the  white  sands  of  the  Martyrs'  Bay,  once  reddened 
wiUi  the  life-blood  of  *^  the  family  "  of  lona. 


8TAFFA.  103 


CHAPTER  IV. 

TH8  INKSB  HSBBIDBS. 

StefiBii— -FitHnObttQ  to  Skj&--Id8more—Miin— Legended  CuUeDnaii— Legend 
of  Lochbuy— L^iend  of  Loch  Awe— Isle  ol  Cumfr-^t  Micfaaers  Eve— 
How  obsonred  in  Bam— Noidereys  and  SaderejB— Isle  of  Mock— Wild 
fioAr  of  Scotland— Wolvefr—Beayen— Isle  of  Rom— Scuir  of  Eigg— Pioad 
Lords  of  the  Isles— The  Isle  of  Blists. 

DiSTiKCTLT  yiBible  from  lona,  at  a  distance  of  aboat  eight  miles, 
lies  StafTa — **  the  Isle  of  Columns/' — so  its  name  signifies  in  the 
Scandinavian  dialect  An  island  now  as  famous  for  its  natural 
wondeiSy  as  lona  for  its  human  associations,  though,  strange  to  say, 
while  the  latter  has  from  time  immemorial  been  a  centre  of  attrac- 
tion, first  to  the  Pagan,  and  then  to  the  Christian  world,  the  feme 
of  Stafia  dates  back  only  for  one  century.  It  is  just  one  hundred 
years  since  its  wonderful  caves  were  first  discovered  by  Sir  Joseph 
Banks,  whose  glowing  descriptions  drew  thither  a  handful  of 
geologists  and  men  of  letters. 

l^ow  the  name  of  the  Isle  is  a  household  word  in  the  mouths  of 
thousands  of  tourists  who  pour  in  thither  day  by  day,  throughout 
the  summer,  and  spend  one  little  hour  rushing  from  cave  to  cave, 
disturbing  the  solemn  echoes  with  their  howling  and  hooting,  to  the 
unspeakable  disgust  of  the  seals,  and  cormorants,  and  white  sea- 
mews,  whose  solitude  is  thus  rudely  invaded — to  say  nothing  of  the 
feelings  of  the  mighty  Fingal,  whose  spirit  is  supposed  still  to  haunt 
the  wondrous  cavern  that  bears  his  name. 

I  need  not  say  how  eminently  unsatisfactory  to  many  minds, 
must  be  such  a  mode  of  scampering  over  one  of  nature's  most  awe- 


104  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

inspiring  works.  But  the  only  way  in  which  it  is  possible  for  any 
one  not  yachting  to  see  it  more  leisurely,  is  by  remaining  at  Zona, 
or  Ulva,  and  taking  a  boat  thence  for  the  day.  And  truly,  it  is 
well  worth  this  exertion,  to  know  the  inexpressible  delight  of 
standing  alone  within  that  glorious  caye,  with  no  sound  of  jarring 
human  voice  to  disturb  the  sacred  silence  of  that  grand  temple, 
**  not  made  with  hands,"  but  reared  by  the  great  Creator  Himself. 
A  wondrous  fane  indeed,  with  the  perfect  symmetry  of  its  countless 
gigantic  columns,  and  marvellous  roof,  formed  (like  the  strange 
pavement  outside,  and  like  the  gallery  on  which  we  stand,)  of  the 
broken  bases  of  hexagonal  pillars,  which  fit  together  in  faultless 
honeycomb. 

The  colouring,  too,  is  a  marvel  of  beauty,  for  this  basalt  combines 
every  tint  of  rarest  marble,  that  ever  human  skill  brought  together, 
to  decorate  the  costliest  temple.  Warm  red  and  brown  and  richest 
maroon  tones  prevail,  but  the  whole  gleams  with  green  and  gold 
lichen  and  sea^-weed,  while  here  and  there  a  mosaic  of  pure  white 
lime  has  filtered  through,  encrusting  the  pillars,  which  seem  trans- 
formed to  snowy  alabaster. 

Ever  and  anon,  the  innermost  depths  of  the  great  chancel,  gleam 
with  a  sudden  flash,  as  the  clear  green  wave  comes  swelling  in,  over- 
flowing the  oauseway  of  broken  pillars  that  forms  so  marvellous  a 
pavement,  and  breaking  in  pure  white  foam,  which  shows  more 
dazzling  against  the  gloom  of  that  sombre  back-ground,  and  casting 
trembling  reflecting  lights,  which  trickle  and  waver  over  every 
hidden  crevice  of  roof,  or  clustered  columns. 

Quick  as  thunder-roar  follows  the  lightning-flash,  is  that  white 
gleam  succeeded  by  a  booming  sound,  louder  than  the  thunder 
itself,  yet  mellow  as  the  sweetest  note  of  some  huge  organ,  and 
wakening  echoes  deeper  and  more  sonorous  than  ever  throbbed 
through  dim  cathedral  aisle  ; — echoes  which  linger  and  repeat  them- 
selves on  every  side,  and  are  but  hushed  for  one  moment  of  awful 
silence  while  the  exquisite  green  water  recedes,  only  to  rush  back 
again  with  renewed  force,  re-awakening  that  thrillingly-solemn 
chorus,  which,  in  ages  long  gone,  earned  for  this  cave  its  old  Gaelic 
name  of  Uaimli  Bhinn,  '*  the  melodious  cavern." 


BASALTIC  CAVES.  105 

Altogether  it  is  a  scene  of  which  no  words  can  convey  the  smallest 
idea,  and  as  we  pass  suddenly  from  the  glaring  sunlight  into  that 
cool  deep  shade,  and  look  down  into  the  wondrous  depths  of  that 
world  of  clear  crystalline  green,  we  cannot  choose  hut  helieve  that 
we  have  invaded  the  chosen  home  of  some  pure  spirit  of  the  sea — 
some  dainty  Undine,  whose  low  musical  notes  we  can  almost  think 
we  discern,  mingling  with  the  voice  of  the  waves. 

For  me  this  cavern  has  acquired  a  special  interest,  since  the  day 
when  one  of  my  kinsmen  narrowly  escaped  finding  here  a  hriny 
grave,  among  the  seals  and  cormorants.  He  had  come  hy  steamer, 
and  landed  in  its  hoat.  Then  had  scramhled  along  from  one  hasaltic 
pillar  to  another,  till  he  was  far  in  the  interior  of  the  cave,  when  a 
terrified  shout  from  those  outside,  made  him  turn  round,  to  see  the 
whole  mouth  of  the  cave  darkened  hy  one  mighty  green  wave, 
pouring  its  volume  of  water  towards  the  spot  where  he  stood. 

There  was  not  a  second  to  lose,  hut  hy  a  quick  flash  of  inspiration, 
he  rememhered  having,  a  moment  hefore,  ohserved  one  pillar  so 
detached  from  its  fellows,  that  a  man  could  clasp  it ;  and  springing 
to  the  spot  where  it  stood,  he  grasped  it,  with  so  firm  a  hold,  that 
though  the  rushing  waters  hoiled  and  surged  ahove  his  head,  he  was 
safe — and  when  the  wave  receded,  he  was  ahle  to  follow  it,  and 
rejoin  the  more  cautious  friends  who,  pale  with  terror,  were  watching 
to  see  his  drowned  body  floating  on  the  water.  The  steamboat 
authorities  remonstrated  with  him  for  his  imprudence,  but  were 
quite  pacified  on  his  assuring  them  that  he  had  no  wish  to  do  it 
again !  It  seems  that  this  occasional  big  wave  is  a  well-known  feature 
of  this  sea,  and  one  for  which  the  wary  are  always  on  the  alert 

Although  the  chief  interest  of  the  isle,  naturally  attaches  to 
Fingal's  Cave,  there  are  many  others,  whose  beguiling  beauty  might 
well  bid  us  linger  awhile  in  each.  Such  are  "  Mackinnon's  "  and 
the  "Boat  Cave" — the  latter  so  called  because  it  can  only  be 
entered  by  a  boat  But  more  curious  than  these,  is  that  known 
as  the  "  Clam-shell,"  where  the  huge  columns,  instead  of  standing 
vertically,  lie  bent  like  the  curved  ribs  of  a  ship,  showing  at  both 
ends  of  the  pillars  the  invariable  honeycomb  pattern,  and  telling  of 
some  strange  and  unwonted  influence,  which  must  have  aflected  the 


106  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

mass  of  molten  basalt,  and  prevented  its  assuming  its  regular  upright 
form. 

But  it  is  time  we  passed  on  to  other  isles ;  else  you  will  never 
have  patience  to  listen  to  the  story  of  our  farther  wandering.  From 
lona  we,  of  course,  returned  to  Oban,  that  great  centre  of  all  the 
West  Coast  steamers  and  coaches,  thence  starting  at  day-break  for 
the  Isle  of  Skye,  and  a  more  exquisite  fifteen  hours'  sail  than  this 
proved,  could  not  well  be  imagined.  The  sea  was  like  glass,  or  oil, 
or  whatever  you  can  think  of,  that  is  most  smooth  and  mellow. 

"  Each  puny  wave  Id  diamonds  rolled 
O'er  Uie  calm  deep,  where  hues  of  gold 
With  azure  strove,  and  green." 

Every  peak  and  shapely  outline  of  island  or  mainland  lay  before  us 
in  ethereal  lilac.  On  the  one  side  Ben  Cruachan,  without  a  cloud, 
on  the  other,  the  wild  beautiful  ranges  of  Mull,  while  before  us  lay 
the  green  isle  of  Lismore  **  the  Great  Garden  "  famous  in  the  ecclesi- 
astical history  of  the  Isles,  as  the  ancient  seat  of  the  Bishops  of 
Argyle,  whose  Castle  of  Auchindoun  crowned  a  high  crag  overlook- 
ing the  island,  and  the  stormy  waters  of  the  Sound  of  MulL  The 
Cathedral  of  lismore  was  dedicated  to  St.  Muluag,  a  saint  of  the 
seventh  century.  The  chief  peculiarity  is  that  it  seems  to  have 
consisted  of  only  a  choir  and  chantry,  for  there  appears  to  be  no 
trace  of  nave  or  transepts. 

Every  rock,  every  inlet,  every  old  castle  has  its  own  tradition. 
Of  one  desert  rock,  a  mile  from  Castle  Duart,  on  the  shore  of  Mull, 
it  is  told  how  the  chief  of  the  Macleans,  having  married  the  Lady 
Elizabeth,  the  daughter  of  Archibald,  second  Earl  of  Argyle,  thereby 
incurred  the  wrath  of  his  own  clan,  who  swore  that  the  blood  of 
the  Campbells  should  never  rule  over  them.  Bather  than  this,  they 
would  slay  both  the  lady  and  her  little  one. 

The  cowardly  husband  consented  to  remain  passive.  One  dark 
winter's  nighty  they  forced  her  into  a  small  boat,  and  without  pity 
for  her  tears  and  cries,  left  her  on  this  barren  rock,  which  at  high 
tide  is  covered  by  the  waves.  Slowly  the  tide  rose ;  and  in  her 
bitter  anguish  she  cried  in  vain  in  the  darkness,  and  yet  there  was 


LEGENDS  OF  THE  JCAGLEANS.  107 

no  Toice  that  answered — ^no  friendly  fisher  had  spread  his  nets  near 
that  treacherous  rock.  The  remorseless  waves  crept  on  and  on, 
lipping  so  gently  over  her  white  feet,  and  silently  stealing  upward, 
till  she  stood  kneo^leep  in  the  cold,  icy  darkness ;  and  still  her 
straining  ear  could  catch  no  sound  of  welcome  oar&  Only  the 
white  sea-birds  circled  round,  and  mingled  their  sharp,  piercing 
cries  with  her  own. 

The  crael  waters  had  reached  her  breast,  as  the  first  flush  of 
dawn  streaked  the  east,  when  a  tiny  skiff  came  in  sight  With 
agonized  effort  she  managed  to  attract  attention.  The  fishers 
proved  to  be  some  of  Argyle's  men,  who,  having  thus  rescued  their 
lady  from  the  very  brink  of  the  grave,  soon  brought  her  safely  to 
her  father's  castle.  Here  she  remained  hidden  till  a  solemn  an- 
nouncement of  her  death  was  sent  by  her  disconsolate  husband, 
who  of  course  had  connived  at  the  abduction  of  the  lady. 

Presently  he  arrived,  with  his  kinsmen  and  followers,  all  dad 
in  deepest  dule,  to  mingle  their  lamentations  with  those  of  her 
bereaved  father.  Aigyle  received  them,  also  clad  in  black,  and  a 
solemn  feast  was  prepared  in  the  great  hall ;  when  the  door  opened, 
and  the  lady  entered,  superbly  dressed,  and  calmly  took  her  seat  at 
the  table.  Maclean  sprang  up  aghast,  and  escaped  as  far  as  the  castle 
gate,  where  the  Lord  of  Lome,  following,  slew  him  as  he  fled.  His 
kinsmen  were  made  prisoners,  and  detained  as  hostages  for  the  safety 
of  the  infant,  which  had  been  saved  by  its  nurse,  and  was  in  due 
time  restored  to  its  mother. 

It  fared  worse,  however,  with  another  infant  chief  of  these 
turbulent  Macleans,  whose  young  life  was  forfeited  as  a  sure 
revenge  on  his  father.  The  story  runs  that  Maclean  of  Lochbuy 
went  forth  on  a  grand  hunting  expedition,  taking  with  him  his  wife 
and  only  child,  the  latter  being  still  in  the  arms  of  his  nurse. 
The  deer,  hotly  pursued  by  the  hounds,  came  swiftly  up  the  glen, 
but  turning  aside  by  the  narrow  pass,  guarded  only  by  one  of 
Maclean's  vassals,  they  burst  past  him,  and  escaped.  The  chief,  in 
dire  wrath,  caused  the  man  to  be  instantly  stripped  and  flogged  in 
presence  of  the  clan,  a  degradation  which  the  hot  Highland  blood 
could  not  brook. 


108  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

Before  tbat  day  was  done,  the  insult  was  amply  avenged,  for  the 
forester, burning  with  rage,  watched  his  opportunity,  and  in  a  moment 
snatched  the  heir  of  Lochbuy  from  the  arms  of  the  nurse,  and,  bound- 
ing from  rock  to  rock  with  the  speed  of  a  red  deer,  he  reached  an 
almost  inaccessible  crag  overhanging  the  sea  which  boiled  below. 

The  screams  of  the  agonized  mother,  the  anguish  of  the  father, 
were  as  music  and  balm  to  the  triumphant  Highlander,  who  laughed 
aloud  as  he  held  the  shrieking  child  outstretched  above  the  waters. 
In  mad  despair  Maclean  craved  forgiveness,  and  prayed  for  the  life 
of  his  only  little  one.  At  length  Allastair  relented,  and  made 
conditions  with  his  chief.  He  agreed  to  restore  the  child,  provided 
Maclean  would  bare  his  own  back  to  the  cord,  and  submit  to  be 
publicly  scourged,  as  he  had  been,  in  presence  of  his  clansmen. 

To  their  grief  and  indignation  the  chief  consented,  and  calmly 
underwent  the  penalty  that  must  for  ever  degrade  him  in  their 
eyes,  hoping  thereby  to  save  his  child.  Then  turning  once  more 
to  the  pinnacle  where  Allastair  still  stood  high  in  mid-air,  he  bade 
him  fulfil  his  promise  and  restore  the  child.  With  a  burst  of 
fiendish  laughter  the  vassal  held  the  child  aloft,  and  crying  aloud 
"  Avenged  1  avenged  ! "  he  sprang  from  the  cliff,  still  grasping  the 
infant.  In  another  second  the  raging  waters  had  closed  above  him, 
and  sucked  him  down  into  some  deep  basaltic  cavern,  whence,  says 
the  legend,  neither  wave  nor  storm  ever  brought  back  the  body  of 
man  or  child,  to  the  wailing  mother,  who  day  after  day,  through 
long  years,  wandered  wearily,  seeking  for  her  little  one  in  every 
crevice  of  those  cruel  rocks. 

Beautiful  Ben  Cruachan  has  also  his  own  legend  to  tell,  con- 
cerning the  formation  of  Loch  Awe — a  story  handed  down  by  a 
long  line  of  Gaelic  bards,  from  the  days  of  Ossian  himself,  even  to 
the  present  time.  He  tells  how,  in  by-gone  ages,  the  Cailleach 
Vera  or  Bera,  the  aged  daughter  of  Griannan,  the  Mountain  of  the 
Sun,  kept  ceaseless  vigil  on  his  summit.  To  her  charge  had  been 
committed  a  certain  spring  on  the  top  of  the  highest  crag,  and  her 
duty  it  was  each  night,  to  seal  up  the  mouth  of  the  fountain,  laying 
thereon  a  mystic  stone,  carved  with  strange  symbols,  ere  the  sun's 
last  ray  had  kissed  the  mountain-top. 


THE  LEGEND  OF  LOCH  AWE.  109 

For  many  long  ages  she  had  done  her  work  faithfully,  and  pros- 
perity blessed  the  fertile  lands  aronnd.*  But  in  an  evil  honr.  Vera 
was  overcome  by  the  gentlest  of  all  insidious  foes.  When  the  wild 
deer  gathered  around  her,  waiting  to  be  milked,  one  refractory  hind 
darted  away  from  the  herd,  and  Yera  followed  her,  oyer  moor  and 
moss,  till  her  aged  limbs  were  weary ;  so  on  returning  to  her  seat 
beside  the  fountain,  she  laid  her  down  to  rest  in  the  sunny  noontide, 
and  a  sweet  dreamy  sleep  stole  over  hen 

The  day  woreion — ^the  shadows  of  evening  crept  up  the  mountain- 
side. Vainly  did  the  sun's  last  rays  gleam  on  the  sleeper.  The 
fountain  still  lay  unsealed,  and  the  murmuring  of  its  waters  only 
lulled  her  into  deeper  slumber.  The  darkness  closed  around,  and 
with  it  came  a  mighty  tempest,  but  still  Yera  slept.  Three  times 
the  sun  rose  and  set,  ere  she  awoke  from  that  strange  deep  dream- 
world. Starting  up,  she  remembered  her  duty,  and  sought  to  seal 
the  fountain  with  the  mystic  stone.  But  instead  of  its  quiet  waters, 
a  raging  torrent  now  poured  down  the  mountain-side,  and  all  the 
flood-gates  of  heaven  seemed  open  ;  while  crashing  thunder  rolled 
amid  the  hills. 

Then,  as  she  glanced  downward  to  the  valley  of  Lorn,  hitherto 
the  greenest  and  most  fertile  land  in  all  Argyle,  she  beheld  only  a 
raging  sea  of  dark,  stormy  waters ;  and  Yera  the  Aged  trembled, 
for  she  knew  what  mischief  ^her  ill-timed  sleep  had  wrought  Even 
to  this  day,  the  waters  lie  in  the  vaUey  ;  and  in  wild  wintry  squalls 
they  can  still  rage  as  madly  as  when  first  they  flooded  the  land ; 
and  the  fisher,  whose  frail  boat  has  battled  with  those  black  waves, 
will  tell  you  that  at  such  times  Loch  Awe  is  **  awesome  "  indeed. 

But  when  the  great  lake,  with  its  green  islands  and  overhanging 
birches,  lies  bathed  in  peaceful  sunlight^  shepherd  and  fisher  alike 
confess  that  Yera's  sleep  was  no  dire  evil  after  alL  One  little 
island  in  the  midst  of  those  broad  waters  has  for  centuries  been 
dear  to  the  hearts  of  the  people  They  call  it  Inishail ;  and  here 
in  olden  days  an  order  of  Cistercian  nuns  found  a  calm  retreat,  and 
solemn  chaunts  and  litanies  rose  from  that  old  chapel,  and  floated 
upward  through  the  sunlit  air. 

Here^  too,  many  a  solemn  funexal  procession  came  rowing  up  the 


110  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

lake,  while  women's  voices  wailed  shrill  coronachs,  and  the  pipes 
played  wild  pihrochs  and  laments.  For  from  many  a  distant  valley 
the  dead  were  brought,  that  they  might  sleep  within  sonnd  of  holy 
prayer  and  psalm.  Here,  even  to  this  day,  new  generations  are  laid 
beside  their  fathers,  but  the  boat  that  bears  them  comes  and  goes 
in  silence  ;  for  some  of  the  ''  unco  guid  '*  fear  that  the  bagpipes  are 
wicked,  so  the  old  pathetic  music  has  been  put  down,  and  no  sound 
now  breaks  the  stillness,  save  the  shrill  cries  of  the  beautiful  oyster- 
catchers,  or  the  liquid  whistle  of  the  curlew.  But  wild  flowers 
innumerable  lend  their  honeyed  fragrance  to  this  sweet  and  quiet 
spot,  where  a  tremulous  cloud  of  blue-bells  veils  each  nameless 
grave,  their  dainty  cups  scarce  stirred  by  the  faint  breezes,  which 
seem  as  though  they  loved  to  linger  here. 

A  silent,  lonely  resting-place  is  this  little  island  of  the  dead, 
floating  on  the  clear,  blue  waters ;  while  the  great  hills  watch  on 
every  side,  in  grand  shadowy  masses,  as  if  guarding  that  store-house 
of  most  precious  dust. 

Beautiful  as  we  may  deem  this  lovely  lake,  its  creation  was  a 
cause  of  bitter  grief  to  poor  old  Cailleach  Vera,  who  straightway 
forsook  her  home  on  Ben  Cruachan,  and  passed  over  to  the  Emerald 
Isle,  where  a  hilly  range  at  Lough  Crew  still  bears  her  nama  Here 
she  busied  herself  in  piling  a  great  number  of  cairns  of  all  sizes, 
which  remain  to  this  day.  In  an  evil  hour,  however,  she  contrived 
to  break  her  neck,  and  several  Irish  traditions  record  her  burial 
near  one  of  these  great  tumuli.  One  of  the  most  curious  Dolmens 
in  County  Meath  is  commonly  known  as  her  house,  while  a  roughly- 
hewn  stone  seat,  quaintly  engraven  with  mystic  lines  and  circles,  is 
shown  as  her  chair. 

As  we  sail  onward,  legends  seem  to  multiply.  A  wild  tale  was 
told  us  of  the  little  Island  of  Canna,  lying  on  the  other  side  of  Rum. 
On  the  top  of  a  high  rock,  quite  detached  from  the  Isle,  are  the 
ruins  of  a  small  castle,  to  which  the  sole  access  is  by  a  dangerous, 
almost  precipitous  path  among  the  crags.     This  is 

"  Canna'a  tower,  that,  steep  and  grey, 
Like  falcon-nest  o'erhangs  the  bay." 


DEDICATING  HORSES  TO  THE  SUK.  Ill 

Fiom  these  giddy  tanets  a  fair  woman  looked  and  watched  thiongh 
many  weary  yeata  for  the  help  that  neyer  came.  One  of  the  cruel 
Ocean  Lords  had  brought  her  from  foreign  shores,  and  being  madly 
jealous  of  her  beauty,  chose  this  grim  fortress  as  a  cage  meet  for 
his  lovely  captive ;  and  many  a  time  the  boatmen  passing  near  her 
prison  saw  her  weeping  on  the  castle  wall,  or  heard  a  plaintive  song 
in  some  strange  unknown  tongue.  Even  to  this  day  they  whisper 
how  the  fishers  who  pass  by  that  grey  crag  in  the  moonlight  have 
heard  low  music  of  a  lute,  and  the  sad  heart-broken  cry  of  a 
woman. 

When  Pennant  visited  this  island  in  the  middle  of  last  century 
he  was  much  struck  by  the  multitude  of  horses,  in  proportion  to 
the  few  scattered  herds  of  sheep ;  and  also  noticed  a  quaint  old  trace 
of  sun-worship,  like  that  practiBed  in  lona,  namely,  that  on  the  Eve 
of  St.  Michael  the  people  assembled  at  the  Cladha,  or  grave-yard, 
where  every  lad  mounted  his  horse  without  saddle,  taking  some  lass 
en  croupe.  He  might  take  his  neighbour's  wife  if  he  pleased,  but 
not  his  own.  The  couples  then  rode  in  procession  from  the  village 
to  an  old  stone  cross,  doubtless  originally  a  pre-Christian  menhir, 
round  which  they  rode  thrice  sunwise,  afterwards  returning  to  the 
village  inn,  where  the  lass  treated  her  swain,  and  all  present  shared 
a  huge  oat  cake,  made  in  the  form  of  a  quadrant  of  a  circle,  and 
daubed  with  milk  and  eggs.  The  cake  was  so  huge  as  to  consume 
two  pecks  of  meaL  Of  the  origin  of  this  quaint  custom,  the  people 
knew  nothing,  save  its  antiquity.  The  identical  ceremony  was  also 
observed  in  the  Long  Island,  and  Korth  and  South  TJist,  of  all 
which  St.  Michael  was  patron  saint  The  festival  was  called  **  the 
Oda."  After  making  the  sunwise  turns,  the  day  was  devoted  to 
horse-racing  of  the  most  primitive  type. 

Even  on  lone  St  Kilda,  this  singular  custom  was  long  kept  up. 
The  Key.  Kenneth  Macaulay,  writing  in  a.d.  1764,  tells  that  he 
found  this  people  possessed  of  ten  little  ponies,  and  St  Michael's 
Day  was  celebrated  by  bare-backed  races,  without  stirrup  or  bridle 
— after  which  all  the  people  ate  ''  large  loaves  "  dedicated  to  the 
Saint! 

Strange  to  say,  in  the  small  Isle  of  Bana,  immediately  to  the 


112  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

south  of  South  Uist,  the  same  custom  is  still  practised,  not  on  St. 
Michael's  Day,  Sept.  29th,  hut  on  Sept.  25th,  a  day  sacred  to  St. 
Barr,  the  patron  saint  of  the  isle,  alheit  ignored  in  the  Homish 
Calendar.  To  him  are  dedicated  two  small  chapels  at  Kil-Bar,  and, 
on  this  festival,  the  people  (who  are  almost  all  Roman  Catholics) 
first  meet  to  hear  mass  in  the  chapel  at  Borve,  on  the  other  side  of 
the  Island,  and  then  they  mount  their  rough  ponies,  every  man 
taking  up  some  woman  hehind  him,  and  so  they  ride  across  the 
Isle,  and  go  thrice  sunwise  round  the  ruined  chapels.  Instead  of 
the  girls  standing  treat  at  the  inn,  in  the  modernized  fashion  of 
Canna,  these  Barra  lassies  are  expected  to  provide  a  lot  of  wild 
carrots,  as  a  delicate  attention  to  their  escorts. 

The  green  island  of  Canna  yields  sweet  pasture  to  lowing  herds 
of  kine  ;  and  calm  pictures  of  pastoral  life  meet  you  at  every  turn, 
telling  the  every-day  story  of  many  a  quiet  life,  hegun,  continued, 
and  ended  on  this  lonely  sea-girt  rock.  Those  who  have  dwelt 
among  its  people  tell  of  their  generous  kindliness  to  the  strangers, 
but  never  fail  to  wonder  at  the  strange  under-tone  of  melancholy 
which  seems  to  pervade  the  whole  character  of  all  these  islanders, 
as  though  a  life-long  communing  with  mists  and  waves  had  enfolded 
their  spirits  in  a  silent  chill,  such  as  comes  over  even  the  unimagin- 
ative and  the  full-fed,  when  wandering  on  some  barren  moor,  with 
cold,  grey,  spiritual  mists  floating  on  every  side. 

Perhaps  these  people  of  Canna  grow  weary  of  "  the  ever-sounding 
and  mysterious  main,"  for  from  time  immemorial  they  have  laid 
their  dead  on  the  furthest  point  inland,  where  only  a  distant  murmur 
of  the  sea  can  reach  them.  A  little  rugged  kirkyard  it  is  ;  a  field 
of  rank  waving  grass,  dotted  with  grey  rocks,  carried  thither  from 
the  shore,  to  mark  the  resting-place  of  the  sleepers ;  while  a  broken 
cross  of  yellow  sandstone,  guards  this  lone  God's-acre.  It  is  one  of 
those  stones  that  tells,  perhaps,  of  ancient  superstitions,  for  on  it 
are  carved  divers  emblems  of  unknown  meaning ;  amongst  others,  a 
camel,  the  sole  instance  in  which  that  Eastern  treasure  appears  in 
Scottish  sculpture.  There  also  remain  some  traces  of  a  church, 
once  dedicated  to  St  Columba. 

The  present  population  of  the  Isle  is  under  three-score  persons. 


THE  NORDEREYS  AND  SUDERETS.         113 

PeDoant,  writing  in  1776,  says  he  found  here  220  souls,  of  whom 
all  but  four  families  were  Roman  Catholic.  The  parish  minister 
and  the  priest  both  resided  on  £igg,  but  came  occasionally  across 
the  stormy  seas  to  visit  their  flock  on  Canna,  and  these,  with  praise- 
worthy moderation,  attended  the  ministrations  of  whichever  chanced 
to  come. 

Then,  as  now,  there  was  famine  in  the  land,  for  though  the  Isles 
looked  green,  the  people  were  in  such  dire  want ''  that  numbers 
had  for  a  long  time  had  neither  bread  nor  meal  for  their  poor  babes. 
Fish  and  milk  was  their  sole  subsistence  at  this  time — the  first,  a 
precarious  diet,  for  their  stock  of  fish-hooks  was  almost  exhausted." 
He  had  brought  ribbons  as  gifts,  but  felt  that  a  few  dozen  fish- 
hooks, or  a  few  pecks  of  meal,  would  have  been  of  far  greater  value. 

Every  ledge  of  this  rocky  coast  is  the  abDde  of  countless  sea- 
birds.  All  along  the  face  of  the  crags  they  make  their  home-  —they 
float  on  the  waters,  and  they  glide  in  mid-air,  with  ceaseless,  yet 
varying  cry.  White  gulls  and  grey  gulls;  kittiwakes  and  sea- 
swallows  ;  black-headed  gulls  anvi  snowy  gannets ;  cormorants 
innumerable,  with  black  glistening  plumage,  and  long  necks  that 
rise  snake-like  from  the  water;  and,  quaintest  of  all,  the  little 
puflius  with  their  thick  scarlet  beaks,  peeping  out  from  the  old 
rabbit-holes,  or  teaching  their  flufly  infants  their  first  lessons  in  a 
life  oil  the  ocean  wave. 

We  were  now  rounding  the  Point  of  Ardnamurchan,  a  blufl*, 
wind  worn  headland,  against  which  a  heavy  surge  continually  beats, 
the  strong  tides  here  keeping  up  a  ceaseless  turmoil,  though  the  sea 
all  aiv)und  be  calm,  as  it  was  this  day.  This  is  the  most  westerly 
point  of  Scotland,  and  in  olden  times  an  imaginary  line  from  this 
point  divided  the  Hebrides  into  two  sovereignties,  those  to  the  north 
being  Nordereys,  the  others  Sudereys.  When  the  land  was  divided 
into  Episcopates,  the  latter  were  assigned  to  the  Bishop  of  Man. 
Hence  the  title  "  Sodor  and  Man."  The  Nordereys  were  subject  to 
the  ecclesiastical  government  of  lona,  and  now  form  part  of  the 
Bishopric  of  Argyle  and  The  Isles. 

We  next  passed  the  low  green  pasture  lands,  which  form  the 
Isle  of  Mack,  or  Mouach,  the  isle  of  swine,  once  probably  the  haunt 

I 


114  IN   THE  HEBRIDES. 

of  the  wild  boar,  which  has  bequeathed  its  name  to  many  a  hill 
and  valley.  I  should  rather  have  said  the  wild  sow.  The  boar  has 
namesakes  of  its  own,  as  £einn-an-tuirc,  but  the  sow  has  Scuir-na- 
Mouach,  Sloch-Muick,  the  swine's  pass,  Muckerach,  Stron-na-Muich, 
Ben  Muich  Dhii,  Glen  Muick,  Loch  Muick,  Dun-a-muc,  Muckaim. 
There  are  also  two  other  isles  known  as  Eilan-na-Muck,  to  say 
nothing  of  the  Boar  of  Badenoch  and  the  Sow  of  Athol  on  the 
Highland  line  !  while  in  Ireland  we  find  Muck  Island  and  Port 
Muck,  near  Belfast,  and  the  Abbey  of  Muck-a-more,  the  great  sow, 
near  Antrim,  and  Muck-ross  on  the  lake  of  Killamey. 

It  is  believed  by  some  learned  authorities  that  swine  were  held 
sacred  by  our  ancestors.  We  know  for  a  fact  that  they  were  so 
amongst  the  Gauls,  and  that  they  had  the  run  of  the  sacred  oak- 
groves  of  the  Druids,  where  they  found  a  plentiful  supply  of  acorns, 
and  were  treated  with  all  possible  respect 

A  curious  hint  of  some  strange  reverence  for  this  ungainly 
creature  has  been  brought  to  light,  by  the  discovery  in  a  tumulus 
at  Beregonium,  near  Oban,  of  an  urn,  in  which  were  stored  precious 
bones  and  teeth,  which  Professor  Owen  has  pronounced  to  be  un- 
mistakably those  of  a  pig  !  It  is  quite  possible  that  our  ancestors 
had  adopted  this  symbolism  from  the  ancient  Scandinavian  myth- 
ology ;  from  which,  also,  they  had  borrowed  the  custom  of  gracing 
the  Christmas  or  Yule  festival  with  the  wild  boar's  head. 

Whether  a  lingering  feeling  of  the  homage  due  to  the  wild  boar 
had  anything  to  do  with  its  use  as  an  ecclesiastical  decoration,  I 
leave  others  to  decide ;  certain  it  is  that  among  the  records  of  the 
old  cathedral  at  St.  Andrew's  (anciently  called  Muckross,  the  sow's 
headland),  it  is  stated  that  in  a.d.  1520  a  gigantic  boar  was  killed, 
which  had  slain  both  men  and  cattle.  The  tusks  were  sixteen 
inches  in  length,  and  were  attached  to  the  high  altar.  Probably, 
however,  their  position  had  no  deeper  reason  than  the  caprice  of 
some  reverend  Nimrod,  just  as  in  the  far  east,  we  see  the  beautiful 
ibex  horns  and  other  trophies  of  the  chase,  nailed  up  upon  the  hill 
temples,  by  the  Pahari  sportsmen. 

We  had  left  behind  us  in  Cantyre  one  noted  haunt  of  these 
grim  old  tuskers,  namely,  Beinn-an-tuirc,  the  hill  of  the  wild  boar. 


HAUNTS  OF  WILD  BOARS,  WOLVES,  AND  BEAVERS.      115 

where  Diarmid,  Fingals  mightiest  hunter,  slew  a  terrible  beast 
which  liad  long  ravaged  the  land.  But  Connan  of  the  little  soul 
was  jealous  of  Diarmid's  fame,  and  sought  to  compass  his  death. 
Now,  Diarmid,  like  Achilles,  was  only  vulnerable  in  the  heel. 
Therefore  Connan,  with  fair  words  of  praise,  bade  him  measure  the 
length  of  the  boar.  Diarmid  was  barefooted,  but  he  measured  from 
eoout  to  tail,  and  the  bristles  bent  beneath  his  foot.  But  Connan 
bade  him  measure  backwards,  and  a  venomous  bristle  pierced  his 
heel,  so  that  he  died. 

Then  all  the  mighty  hunters  cried  out  in  their  grief,  because 
Diarmid,  the  swift  of  foot  and  the  sure  of  aim,  lay  dead.  And  his 
beautiful  wife,  Griana,  the  golden-haired  daughter  of  the  Sun,  heard 
that  evil  had  befallen  him,  and  she  hastened  to  his  aid.  But  as  she 
hurried  on,  it  chanced  that  one  drew  a  bow  at  a  venture,  and  the 
arrow  pierced  her  heart,  so  that  she  fell  mortally  stricken.  Then 
they  carried  her  to  the  side  of  Diarmid,  and  laid  the  Beautiful  and 
the  Mighty  in  one  grave.  And  all  the  heroes  stood  around  in  grief, 
and  Fingal,  leaning  on  his  spear,  wept  bitterly  in  silence.  Ami 
Diarmid's  hounds  gathered  close  round  his  bier,  and  large  tears  fell 
from  their  soft  faithful  eyes,  because  they  had  loved  Diaimid  with 
exceeding  love. 

Speaking  of  the  wild  boar,  it  is  interesting  to  remember  that  all 
those  places  in  the  English  lakes  in  which  the  word  Greys  occurs, 
as  Gryesdale-tarn,  near  Uelvellyn,  Gryesfell,  Grasmere,  and  also 
such  names  as  Everaley,  Evershot,  and  Evei'shaw  (derived  from 
eofefy  the  wild  boar),  bear  testimony  to  his  presence  there  in  olden 
days,  though  he  has  long  since  passed  away,  together  with  the 
wolves  and  the  beavers,  both  of  which  have  likewise  bequeathed 
their  names  to  some  of  their  old  haunts,  such  as  Wolferton  near 
Sandringham,  Wolferlow  in  Hereford,  and  Wolvesey  near  Win- 
chester, where  the  Welsh  used  to  pay  their  annual  tribute  of  wolves' 
heads. 

The  beavers  have  left  many  a  trace  of  their  favourite  retreats  in 
the  midland  counties,  where  we  find  such  names  as  Bevercoates, 
Beverstone,  and  Beverley,  which  are  all  said  to  mark  the  beaver's 
haunts.     So,  we  are  told,  do  sundry  Welsh  names,  such  as  Nant 

I  2* 


ESCBB 


116  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

Francon,  Llyn-y-Afrange,  and  Sarn-yr-Afrande,  that  is,  the  broad - 
tailed,  which  being  interpreted,  are  the  beavers  dale,  the  beaver*s 
pool,  and  the  beaver's  dam.  Curious,  is  it  not,  to  think  that  these 
shy,  strange  creatures  should  once  have  been  so  abundant  in  Scot- 
land, that  their  fur  was  a  considerable  article  of  trade,  the  duty  to 
be  levied  thereon  being  among  the  items  recorded  in  the  Acts  of 
Parliament  of  David  I.,  King  of  Scotland  1 

As  to  the  wolves,  it  is  said  that  the  last  of  that  grisly  race  was 
slain  in  1680  by  the  spear  of  Sir  Ewen  Cameron, 

Still  we  sail  onwards,  startling  the  sea-birds,  which  float  in  busy, 
noisy  crowds,  wherever  the  herring  lead  them,  and  scarcely  deign 
to  rise  from  the  water  at  our  approach.  From  the  very  bows  of  the 
ship  they  float 'upwards  in  white  and  grey  clouds,  and  hover  around 
us  for  a  few  seconds  with  angry  cries,  then  once  more  returning  to 
the  herring  shoals,  they  recommence  fishing  in  good  earnest. 

Behind  the  green  shores  of  Muick  (the  Eilan-na-Muchel  as  its 
people  call  it),  rise  the  purple,  pyramidal  peaks  of  Kum  or  Eonin — 
the  wildest  and  most  beautiful  island  of  the  group,  known  ecclesi* 
astically  as  "  The  Parish  of  Small  Isles,"  which  consists  of  Muck, 
Eigg,  Rum,  and  Canna.  The  two  highest  rocky  cones  are  known  as 
Haskeval  and  Haleval.  Green  pasture  lands,  and  purple  heather, 
clothe  those  deep  mountain-sides,  where  bleating  flocks  pick  their 
dangerous  way  among  the  grey  crags.  But  to-day  all  is  bathed  in 
a  soft  lilac  liaze,  veiling  such  small  detail ;  and  the  beautiful  hills 
stand  out  in  grand  simple  form,  all  reflected  faultlessly  in  the  glassy 
sea,  which,  except  in  the  wake  of  our  vessel,  is  literally  without  a 
ripple.  A  few  fisliing-boate,  with  rich  brown  sails,  vainly  crave  one 
little  breeze  to  speed  them  on  their  way.  Sorely  must  their  patience 
be  tried  with  such  long  waiting,  and  we  need  not  wonder  if  they 
watch  us  speeding  onward  with  something  of  the  feeling  of  the  old 
boatman,  who  for  the  first  time  saw  a  steamer  working  against  wind 
and  tide,  and  as  he  watched  her  red  chimney  pouring  forth  its 
volume  of  black  smoke,  cried  out,  "  Get  awa'  wi*  your  deil's  reek  ; 
I'm  just  sailing  as  it  pleases  the  breath  o'  God ! " 

If  it  had  not  been  for  the  "  Deil's  reek  "  we  should  have  made 
but  little  progress  on  this  calm  glorious  day.     As  it  was,  new 


THE  8CUIR  OF  EIGO.  117 

beaaties  revealed  themselves  at  every  turn.  On  the  one  hand  lay 
Loch  Moidart,  opening  into  the  mainland.  Here  stand  the  rums  of 
Castle  Tyrim,  burnt  by  Clanrdnald,  its  own  laird,  when  starting  to 
fight  at  Sheriff-muir,  to  prevent  the  Campbells  from  gaining  posses- 
iiion  of  it. 

Then  comes  the  Scuir  of  £igg,  a  huge  rocky  mass  of  porphyry 
lowering  like  some  stupendous  Tower  of  Babel,  from  a  mighty 
rampart  of  dark  trap  rock  and  columnar  basalt,  the  latter  inclining 
to  slender  columns,  few  exceeding  one  foot  in  diameter.  Some  of 
these  have  fallen;  others  are  broken  across  and  form  a  curious 
pavement  of  honeycomb  pattern.  Hugh  Miller  tells  us  that  this 
whole  mass  overlies  a  vast  forest  of  petrified  trees,^  an  extinct  species 
of  pine,  now  lying  below  the  encroaching  waves,  but  still  telling  its 
own  mysterious  story  of  the  broad  greenwood  that  flourished  here 
before  that  strange  columnar  cliff  had  been  upheaved,  and  cooled 
and  split  into  those  tall  pillars — a  forest  haunted  by  hideous  reptiles, 
which  have  bequeathed  their  fossil  remains  to  gladden  the  geologists 
of  the  nineteenth  century.  Now,  not  one  twig  exists  to  whisper  of 
the  old  forest^  and  the  great  fort  of  the  giants  towers  in  naked 
majesty  above  the  low  grassy  island.  Its  height  is,  I  believe, 
1340  feet. 

Here  a  terrible  deed  of  vengeance  was  once  enacted.  Some  of 
the  Macleods  landed  on  this  island  of  the  liiacdonalds,  and,  being 
too  marked  in  their  attentions  to  the  daughters  of  the  clan,  were 
seized,  bound  hand  and  foot,  and  then  turned  adrift  in  a  boat  to 
perish.  A  kindly  wind,  however,  wafted  them  safely  to  Skye. 
Their  version  of  the  story  roused  the  wrath  of  Macleod,  who 
collected  a  very  strong  body  of  men,  and  sailed  to  the  island  to 
take  summary  vengeance. 

The  terrified  inhabitants,  knowing  themselves  powerless  to  meet 
such  a  force,  concealed  themselves  so  effectually,  that  Macleod 
returned  to  his  galleys,  thinking  that  his  victims  had  taken  refuge 
in  the  Long  Island.  One  unhappy  man,  however,  ventured  from 
bis  hiding-place,  and  was  immediately  espied,  and  tracked  through 
the  snow  to  a  cave,  the  entrance  to  which  was  partly  concealed  by 

'  Pinites  Biggensis,  an  ancient  tree  of  the  Oolite. 


118  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

a  stream  of  water  falling  over  it.  This,  the  Macleods  now  turned 
into  a  new  channel,  and  gathering  a  vast  heap  of  turf  and  fern  at 
the  mouth  of  the  cave,  made  such  a  bonfire  as  suffocated  all  the 
luckless  islanders — 200  in  number — and  their  bleached  bones  lay 
here  for  many  a  long  day.  Sir  Walter  Scott  was  barbarous  enough 
to  carry  off  a  skull,  to  the  great  annoyance  of  his  sailors,  who  vowed 
that  the  wearisome  calms  which  kept  the  vessel  stationary  for  so 
long,  were  all  in  consequence  of  this  sacrilege. 

These  old  HighLmders  were  swift  in  their  revenge,  and  I  don't 
fancy  the  hot  blood  is  altogether  quenclied  yet.  It  is  not  so  very 
long  since  the  duty  of  forgiveness  being  uiged  on  a  dying  man,  he 
was  reminded  in  Whose  hands  vengeance  must  lie.  "  Ay,"  said 
the  would-be  penitent,  '^  it  is  too  sweet  a  morsel  for  mortal  man.'* 
"  Weel,  weol,"  he  added,  "1*11  forgive  him.*'  But  (turning  to  his 
son),  "  De'il  take  ye,  Donald,  gin  ye  forgio  him.**  It  was  the  same 
spirit  tliat  inspired  one  of  another  race,  who  being  asked  on  his 
death-bed  whether  ho  could  forgive  all  his  foes,  sank  back  with 
a  grim  smile  of  satisfaction,  murmuring,  "  Je  n^en  ai  plus,  Je  les 
ai  tous  ecrases  !  " 

There  is  another  great  cave  in  this  neighbourhood,  when^  in  the 
days  of  persecution  alter  1745,  a  large  body  of  Roman  Catholics 
used  to  meet  for  public  worship,  a  huge  led^^o  of  rock  acting  as 
pulpit  and  altar — a  wild  temple  indeed,  with  the  ceaseless  voice  of 
the  restless  wind  and  waves  murmuring  solemn  litanies  on  every  side. 
We  neared  Skye  in  the  beautiful  evening  light,  first  coasting 
along  the  Peninsula  of  Sleat,  which  seemed  fertile  and  well  wooded, 
the  latter  being  by  no  means  a  common  feature  in  these  islands. 
We  caught  a  glimpse  of  Armadale,  the  home  of  the  Maodonalds, 
Lords  of  the  Isles — proud  chiefs  who  carried  the  sense  of  their 
sovereignty  with  them,  wherever  their  wanderings  might  lead  them. 
One  chief,  best  known  as  Donald  Gorm,  having  found  his  way  to 
Ireland,  was  bidden  to  the  Lord-Lieutenant's  table,  and  entering 
late,  took  a  vacant  seat  near  the  door.  His  host  sent  to  ask  him  to 
come  to  the  head  of  the  table  ;  but  the  chieftain's  reply,  more  proud 
than  courteous,  was,  to  ^'tell  the  carle,  that  wherever  Macdonald 
sits,  that  is  the  head  of  the  table." 


"NiaHT  IS  BUT  SOFTER  DAY.  119 

Macdonald  made  the  same  speech  to  Macleod  of  Dunvegan,  on 
whose  shores  he  was  driven  by  stress  of  weather,  during  one  of  the 
interminable  feuds  of  these  two  houses  He  claimed  hospitality 
from  his  foe,  and  was  welcomed.  But  seeing  on  the  table  a  boar's 
head,  which  he  held  to  be  an  evil  omen^  he  seated  himself  below 
the  salt,  in  tlie  midst  of  his  own  men,  and  when  Macleod  bade  him 
come  up  beside  him,  made  this  same  reply.  This  passed  off  well 
enough,  but  later,  a  quarrel  arose  as  to  the  merits  of  their  respective 
dirks  and  the  strong  right  hand  which  wielded  them;  then  a 
whispered  caution  from  a  Macleod  lass  to  a  Macdonald  sweetheart, 
made  the  chief  decide  not  to  sleep  in  the  castle,  but  remain  with  his 
men  in  the  bam  prepared  for  them,  whence  at  midnight  they 
silently  sallied  forth  and  took  refuge  under  a  great  rock ;  soon  they 
beheld  a  broad  sheet  of  flame  from  the  old  bam  lighting  up  sea  and 
sky,  the  dry  heatlier  prepared  for  their  couch  having  done  its  work 
well,  as  fuel  to  kindle  that  treacherous  "  lowe."  And  while  the 
Macleods  rejoiced  over  their  own  vile  misdeeds,  the  Macdonalds 
inarched  calmly  back  to  their  galley,  with  their  pipes  playing,  and 
with  a  shout  of  defiance,  the  blazing  and  crackling  of  that  inhospit- 
able roof  lighting  them  on  their  way. 

We  were  now  passing  through  the  Sound  of  Sleat,  and  the  warm 
flush  of  sunset  lighted  up  the  wild  beauty  of  Knoydart  and  Glenelg, 
*  *  the  glen  of  beauty  ;  "  and  gleamed  on  the  waters  of  Loch  Xevis, 
and  dark  Loch  Houm,  the  lakes  of  heaven  and  of  hell.  Now  we 
are  in  the  channel  of  Kyle  Rhea,  "  Straits  of  the  King,"  which  separ- 
ates Skye  from  the  mainland  ;  it  is  but  half  a  mile  across,  and  lies 
under  the  shadow  of  Ben  na  Caillach,  "  the  old  wife's  hill,'*  which 
looms  dark  and  huge  above  us. 

Then  comes  another  narrow  channel,  Kyle  Akin,  Straits  of  Haco, 
and  we  pass  the  islands  of  Scalpa  and  Eaasay,  and  all  this  time  we 
are  drawing  nearer  and  nearer  to  the  great  shadowy  CuchuUins,  the 
most  beautiful  mountain  mass  in  all  Scotland,  and  never  seen  to 
greater  advantage  than  on  such  a  night  as  this,  when  the  broad 
moonlight  gleams  upon  the  water,  making  midnight  clear  as  noon. 
Indeed,  in  this  sweet  summer  time  it  can  hardly  be  said  that  there 
is  any  night  at  all,  for  often  I  have  seen  the  last  faint  flush  of  the 


120  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

gloamingy  still  tinting  the  west^  when  the  first  mysterious  shimmer 
of  the  dawn  began  to  tinge  the  eastern  skies ; 

"  And  east  and  west,  without  a  breath, 
Mixt  their  dim  lights,  like  Life  and  Deaths 
To  broaden  into  boundless  day." 

We  were  scarcely  weary  of  watching  this  ever-changing  loveliness, 
when  at  four  in  the  morning  we  readied  Portree — or  rather  Portrigh 
— the  King's  Port,  the  harbour  having  been  so  named  in  honour  of 
King  Haco,  or  as  some  say,  only  in  recent  times,  in  memory  of 
James  Y.,  who  landed  here  while  on  one  of  his  romantic  tours  of 
exploration. 

As  to  the  island  itself.  Pennant  says  its  name  comes  from  the 
Norwegian  Ski,  a  mist,  and  that  it  was  called  Eilan  Skianach,  the 
cloudy  island,  by  reason  of  the  floating  mists  and  clouds  that  so 
constantly  rest  on  its  high  peaks.  Others  declare  the  name  of  Skye 
to  be  derived  from  "  Skianach,"  i,  e,  **  winged,"  because  the  head- 
lands of  Watemish  and  Trottemish  were  supposed  to  give  some- 
thing of  the  form  of  wings  to  the  body  of  the  island.  It  certainly 
is  curious  that  this,  the  largest  island  of  Scotland,  should  be  so 
deeply  indented  by  countless  sea-lochs,  that  no  part  of  it  exceeds 
four  njilcs  in  distance  from  the  ocean ;  indeed  very  few  places  are 
more  than  two  miles  from  the  sea-board. 

We  found  comfortable  quarters  at  the  Hotel,  and  began  our  life 
in  Skye  by  such  a  sleep  as  I  trust  you  may  enjoy  this  night. 


8KTE  WEATHER.  121 


CHAPTEE  V. 

THK   QUIRAINO. 

tJig—A  Terrible  "Spate"— Gaelic  Churches— Forms  of  Worship— Island 
Homes— Timber— The  Famine  of  1885— Primitive  Agriculturiil  Imple- 
ments— No  Frost -Dr.  Johnson— Legend  of  Castle  Ustian— Glens  of  the 
Conan  and  of  the  Rah— The  Quiraing— Monkstadt— Duntulm — Midges 
— A  great  Sacramental  Gathering. 

Onb  thing  I  will  say  for  Skye  weather  :  whatever  it  does,  it  does 
in  thorough  earnest  I  went  there  intending  to  remain  a  week  ; 
but  it  was  four  months  before  I  left  its  hospitable  shores,  and 
during  all  that  time  we  had  either  drenching  rain  ^  or  broiling  heat 
in  alx)ut  equal  parts.  On  this,  our  first  morning,  we  awoke  late, 
with  a  happy  consciousness  that  a  steady  downpour  had  com- 
menced, and  hour  after  hour  passed  without  the  faintest  promise  of 
a  break.  The  laird  of  Kilmuir  had  sent  his  carriage  for  us  at  day- 
break, but  wary  old  John  suggested  the  hope  of  a  break  in  the 
clouds  towards  sunset,  when  sure  enough  it  cleared,  and  we  found 
the  road  in  such  first-rate  order  that  the  fifteen  miles  to  Uig,  right 

*  The  schoolmaster  of  Broadf ord,  who  has  registered  the  rainfall  there  for  the 
last  ten  years,  states  that  one  year  it  amounted  to  96  inches.  **  In  1877  there 
was  rain  for  two  hundred  days ! "  This  fully  accounts  for  the  statement  of  the 
crofters  that  *'  during  the  rains,  the  sea  for  a  quarter  of  a  mile  is  red  with  the 
soil  wa8he<N>ff-Qur  land,  so  that  in  places  the  remaining  soil  is  barely  two 
inches  deep ! " 


122  IN   THE   HEBRIDES. 

Hcrnas  the  district  of  Trotteniiah,  were  accomplislied  with  wonderful 
rapidity. 

Uig  is  a  deep  bay,  in  the  form  of  a  horso-shoe,  the  ]»inta  of 
whicli  are  two  rocky  headlands  rising  abruptly  from  the  sea. 
The  Lodjfc,  where  so  hearty  a  welcome  awaited  «a,  stood  at  the 
head  of  the  Iwy,  exactly  in  tlie  centre,  very  few  feet  above  the 
water  level,  so  that  at  high  tide  we  conid  throw  a  pebble  from  the 


window  into  the  sea.  It  was  very  pleasant  on  these  sweet  si 
evenings,  hut  its  inmates  told  me  that  when  wild  storms  raged  out- 
Kido  the  bay,  their  wrath,  albeit  s]ient  in  the  outer  world,  still  sorely 
troubled  these  quiet  waters,  and  laahed  the  angry  surf  till  it  over- 
leapt  the  low  sea-wall,  and  threw  its  foam  aud  tangle  right  up  to 
tlie  porch.  On  cither  side  of  the  house  a  mountain  streamlet 
ruslicd  to  the  sea  with  ceaseless  babble,  so  that  the  pleasant  home 


A  TERRIBLE  SPATE.  123 

▼irtually  stood  on  a  little  island,  connected  with  tbu  mainland  by 
bridges. 

Alas !  that  pretty  home  is  now  a  memory  of  the  past !  On  a 
memorable  Sanday  in  October,  1877,  a  wild  storm  occurred,  and  so 
heavy  was  the  rainfall  that  both  the  mountain  rivulets  were  trans- 
formed to  raging  torrents.  Madly  they  rushed  down  the  deep 
ravine  on  either  side,  and  swept  o\er  the  little  island.  The  sea 
rose  in  tumultuous  waves,  and  the  surging  floods  met  and  battled 
round  the  house,  whence  most  fortunately  the  family  were  absent 
Only  a  faithful  old  servant  was  left  in  charge,  no  one  dreaming  of 
danger. 

All  night  long  the  raging  waters  roared,  and  when  day  dawned 
the  villagers  looked  down  to  where,  at  sunset,  the  Big  House  had 
stood  so  securely,  but  there  remained  only  some  traces  of  a  ruin, 
visible  above  the  waves,  which  extended  inland  about  a  quarter  of 
a  mile.*  When  the  waters  assuaged,  the  scene  was  one  of  ghastly 
desolation.  The  trim  garden,  which  had  cost  its  owner  so  much 
care  and  expense,  was  strewn  with  large  boulders — the  bridges  were 
washed  away,  as  were  also  all  those  on  the  road  to  Portree.  The 
old  graveyard,  which  had  stood  secure  for  four  hundred  years,  was 
washed  away,  anil  the  bodies  lay  tossed  about  in  hideous  confusion, 
partiiilly  enilK»dded  in  mud  and  gmvcl.  Broken  coffins,  and 
coq)ses  whom  the  waves  hail  robbed  of  their  shrouds,  lay  scattered 
round  the  house,  where  roses  and  fnschias  had  bloomed  the  day 
before.  Many  bodies  were  actually  carriecl  away  by  the  current 
and  thrown  ashore  at  Grieshemish, — a  distance  of  fourteen  miles. 
As  to  the  trusty  old  steward,  he  must  have  been  carried  out  to  sea, 
for  his  body  was  found  cast  up  by  the  tide,  at  a  distance  of  about 
thre^  miles. 

That  terrible  night  is  spoken  of  in  Skye  as  the  night  of  "  the  Big 
Flood  "—one  long  to  be  remembered.  But  at  the  time  of  my  visit 
all  was  bright  and  sunny,  and  happy  children  played  securely  in 
their  pleasant  home. 

On  either  side  of  Uig  Bay  stand  the  two  kirks,  the  Free  Kirk, 

^  AU  traces  of  Uig  Lodge  have  dow  been  effaced,  and  a  more  importaDt  house 
built  on  the  green  shores  of  beautiful  Loch  StaflSn,  at  the  base  of  the  Quiraing. 


124  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

which  is  large  and  crowded,  the  Established,  which  is  small  and 
half  empty.  There  is  no  resident  jninister,  but  the  representatives 
of  either  church  at  Loch  Snizort,  distant  twelve  miles,  arrange 
when  possible  to  come  and  hold  service  here  on  different  Sundays, 
about  three  times  a  month.  But  the  distance  being  considerable, 
and  weather  often  anything  but  encouraging,  their  ministrations  are 
apt  to  be  somewhat  irregular. 

The  service  at  each  is  in  Gaelic,  that  combination  of  savage 
gutturals  being  the  only  language  **  understanded  of  the  people." 
But  in  consideration  of  the  ignorance  of  about  six  inhabitants  of  the 
Lodge,  each  church  allowed  us  a  special  English  service  every  third 
Sunday.  So  after  the  Gaelic  service  had  lasted  about  two  hours  we 
were  expected  to  walk  in,  the  rest  of  the  congregation  remaining 
stationary,  though  a  very  small  proportion  of  the  men  and  none  of 
the  women  understood  the  English  psalm,  prayer,  and  "  discoorse," 
which  followed,  after  which  it  was  our  turn  to  wait  patiently  while 
the  Gaelic  service  came  to  a  conclusion  ;  and  though  to  a  southern 
ear  there  might  be  little  beauty  in  the  wild  tunes  to  which  those 
old  Gaelic  Psalms  are  set,  to  me  they  seemed  so  thoroughly  in 
harmony  with  the  voices  of  wind  and  waves  around  us,  that  they 
acquired  a  charm  often  lacking  in  more  perfect  musia 

The  tunes  are  nominally  the  same  as  some  of  those  common  in 
the  Lowlands,  but  from  the  lips  of  a  Gaelic-speaking  race,  they  seem 
so  entirely  to  assimilate  with  the  language  that  it  would  be  hard  for 
even  a  practised  ear  to  recognize  their  identity.  This  is  partly 
owing  to  the  fact  that  they  are  sung  like  a  kind  of  litany,  each  line 
being  first  chanted  by  the  precentor  alone,  and  then  taken  up  by 
tlie  whole  congregation.  The  verse  generally  begins  in  a  low 
subdued  tone,  which  gradually  swells  as  it  rolls  on,  then  agaii^  the 
voices  sink  and  die  away  in  prolonged  wild  cadence.  Thus  each 
verse  is  sung  in  turn,  and  as  the  congregation  is  in  no  hurry  to  dis- 
perse, and  the  number  of  verses  is  unlimited,  the  singing  seems  to 
roll  on  endlessly,  in  a  soothing  monotony  like  the  sighing  of  the 
night  wind. 

A  favourite  psalm  was  the  65th,  and  its  words  seem  as  though 
written  for  some  such  sea-girt  land ;  well  watered,  and  with  corn 


STANDmO  AT  PRAYER.  125 

land,  and  rich  pastures,  and  little  hills  covered  with  flocks.  Many 
a  time  it  was  recalled  to  my  mind  when  camping  in  the  uttermost 
parts  of  the  earth,  and  from  some  hill  temple  in  the  Himalayas  the 
wild  song  of  the  Paharis  (those  genuine  Highlanders)  came  floating 
up  to  my  tent.  What  words  they  sung  I  knew  not,  douhtless 
hynms  to  rivers,  and  pine  forests,  and  snowy  mountains,  hut  the 
voices  and  harmonies  were  identical,  and  they  never  failed  to  carry 
my  thoughts  hack  to  the  Western  Isles. 

Altogether  there  is  a  wonderful  charm  in  the  simplicity  of  these 
Highland  churches,  and  even  the  custom  which  always  ustnkes  a 
stranger  as  so  singularly  unpleasant  and  unnatural,  namely  that  of 
standing  during  puhlic  prayer,  seems  hero  to  acquire  a  special 
interest,  reminding  us  of  those  early  days  of  the  primitive  Church 
when  the  little  band  of  Christians  marked  the  first  day  of  the  week 
by  standing  at  worship  in  token  that  on  this  day  they  were  justified 
and  freed  from  slavish  dread  by  Christ's  resurrection ;  therefore, 
while  they  knelt  on  the  other  six  days,  they"  deemed  it  impious"* 
to  bend  the  knee  or  to  fast  on  the  Lord's  own  day.  Tlie  standing 
attitude  was  also  adopted  during  Pentecost,  but  not  observed 
uniformly  by  all  the  Churches,  for  we  find  the  Council  of  Nice 
decreeing  that  "  Because  there  are  some  who  kneel  on  the  Lord's 
day,  and  in  the  days  of  Pentecost,  in  order  that  all  things  may  be 

>  "  We  deem  it  impious  to  fast  on  the  Lord's  day,  or  to  pray  kneeling." — 
TsBTVLLiAir,  De  Carand  Militis, 

'*  The  Church  instructs  her  Durselini^  to  make  their  prayers  standing  on  the 
Lord's  Day.*' — Basil,  De  Spirilu  Sancto. 

Justin  Martyr  says : — "  Forasmuch  as  we  ought  to  remember  both  our  fall 
by  sin,  and  the  grace  of  Christ  by  which  we  rise  again  from  our  fall,  therefore 
we  pray  kneeling  six  days,  as  a  symbol  of  our  fall  by  sin  ;  but  our  not  kneel- 
ing on  the  Lord's  Day,  is  a  symbol  of  the  resurrection,  whereby,  through  the 
grace  of  Christ,  we  are  delivered  from  our  sins  and  from  death,  that  is 
mortified  thereby."— Constantine  enacted  a  law,  that  on  festal  days  prayers 
were  to  be  offered  by  the  congregation,  not  kneeling,  but  standing.— Hilary 
speaks  of  it,  as  an  apostolic  practice,  neither  to  fast  nor  worship  kneeling  on 
the  Lord's  Day,  or  the  fifty  days  between  Easter  and  Pentecost.- Jerome 
reckons  it  among  the  traditions  of  the  universal  Church. — Cassian  says  of  the 
Egyptian  Churches,  that  from  Saturday  night  to  Sunday  night,  and  all  the 
days  of  Pentecost*  they  neither  kneeled  nor  fasted. 


126  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

* 
uniformly  performed  in  every  parish  or  diocese,  it  seems  good  to 

the  holy  synod  that  prayers  be  made  to  God  standing." 

So  you  see  that  in  this  matter,  and  perhaps  also  in  some  other 
respects,  the  simple  worship  of  the  isles  comes  nearer  to  the  practice 
of  the  primitive  Christians  than  does  our  own  more  attractive 
ceremonial.  Practically,  however,  the  custom  by  no  means  tends 
to  reverence,  and  it  is  one  which  is  happily  falling  into  disuse  in 
many  Scotch  churches. 

One  picturesque  feature  of  these  congregations  is  that  a  very 
large  proportion  of  the  older  women  still  continue  faithful  to  their 
clean  white  mutches  and  bright  tartan  shawls,  and  some  bonnie 
lassies,  too,  are  not  ashamed  to  make  a  fold  of  their  plaid  act  as 
head-gear,  as  their  mothers  did  before  them,  instead  of  aiming  at 
one  invariable  type  of  dress.  The  poetic  snood,  which  in  olden 
days  was  the  distinguishing  mark  of  every  Highland  maiden,  has 
unfortunately  quite  disappeared,  its  place  being  usurped  by  the 
commonest  hair-net ;  too  often  by  much-beflowered  bonnets. 

This  departure  from  the  simple  old  head-gear  was  originally  due 
to  un  order  of  the  General  Assembly  of  the  Church  of  Scotland  for 
awakening  sleepers,  whose  powers  of  attention  were  exhausted  by 
the  length  of  the  sermons.  The  Kirk  Sessions  thereupon  prohibited 
all  women  from  wearing  plaids  or  hoods  upon  their  heads  in  time 
of  Divine  service,  that  they  might  not  sleep  unobserved  !  These 
law-givers  you  perceive  were  men^  who  could  not  brook  that  the 
women-folk  should  have  such  an  advantage  over  them.^ 

They  were  decidedly  selfish,  too,  in  the  matter  of  seats,  for  until 
long  after  the  Reformation  there  were  no  pews  in  church  save  for 
the  big  magistrates  and  landowners.  All  men  of  low  degree 
brought  their  own  stools  or  benches  to  kirk  with  them  ;  and  the  Kirk 
Sessions  of  1597  forbade  women  to  sit  on  the  forms  men  should 

>  It  was  not  only  in  Scotland  that  compulsory  attention  was  thus  main- 
tained. In  the  parish  books  at  Prestwick  in  Yorkshire,  the  following  entry 
occiu^  in  A.D.  1736.  *'  It  is  ordered  that  13ff.  a  year,  and  a  new  coat  every 
other  year,  be  given  to  George  Qrimshaw  for  his  trouble  and  pains  in  toaking 
$leepers  in  churchy  whipping  out  dugs,  keeping  children  quiet  and  orderly, 
and  keeping  y«  pulpit  and  church  walls  clean."^ 


CHURCH  RBQULATIONS.  127 

occupy.  *'  All  women  most  sit  together  in  the  kirk,  and  sit  laigh," 
that  is,  on  the  ground !  and  lest  they  should  profit  by  this  lowly 
posture,  and  sleep  in  peace,  a  church  officer  was  ordered  to  go 
through  the  kirk  with  a  long  pole,  to  remove  the  plaids  from  the 
heads  of  all  women,  whether  wives  or  maids.  The  same  enactment 
is  recorded  in  the  year  1649,  and  at  later  intervals. 

This  regulation  as  to  '^  sitting  laigh  "  suggests  a  very  different  style 
of  church  from  that  which  we  find  now-a-days — perhaps  more  like 
those  described  by  Dr.  Norman  Macleod,  who,  speaking  of  a  parish 
of  2000  souls  in  the  Western  Highlands,  says  that  in  the  beginning 
of  the  present  century,  it  possessed  only  two  so-called  churches. 
Their  dimensions  were  40  x  16  feet,  and  they  had  neither  seats  nor 
bells.  He  paints  the  congregation  assembling  dripping  wet,  after  a 
long  walk  across  the  mountains  in  heavy  rain,  and  having  to  huddle 
together  in  such  a  bam  as  this — perhaps  reclining  on  the  earthen 
floor — perhaps  sitting  on  bunches  of  heather  or  stones — but  assuredly 
finding  no  luxurious  comfort  as  an  inducement  to  sleep  1 

Doubtless  the  congregations  assembled  in  these  humble  churches, 
were  conisiderably  more  devout  than  some  composed  of  finer  folk  in 
moro  orthodox  buildings.  Such  congregations  for  instance  as  pro- 
voked Bishop  Burnet,  when  he  found  that  "  the  gallants  would  ogle 
the  ladies  of  the  Court,*'  and  that  these  likewise  toould  look  about 
them,  instead  of  attending  to  what  Queen  Mary  called  "  his  thunder- 
ing long  sermons."  He  persuaded  Queen  Anne  to  allow  him  to  have 
all  the  pews  in  St.  James's  Church  raised  so  high  that  his  captives 
oould  see  nothing  lower  than  the  pulpit,  an  example  which  was 
shortly  after  adopted  by  many  of  his  dry  and  long-winded  brethren, 
to  the  lasting  disfigurement  of  our  churches ! 

As  to  the  effects  of  this  legislation  on  the  dresses  of  our  lassies,  of 
course  once  the  plaids  wero  put  down  by  law,  it  was  natural  enough 
that  southern  fashions  should  creep  in ;  and  the  inevitable  bonnet 
with  its  '*  gum-fiowers  "  now  haunts  you  at  every  remotest  corner. 
I  think  one  of  the  worst  points  in  spreading  civilization  is  the 
tendency  to  put  away  all  distinctive  national  dress,  and  reduce  all 
raiment  to  a  dull  uniformity.  And  the  people  in  every  land,  who 
formerly  wore  their  own  accustomed  dress  with  easy  grace  and 


128  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

dimity,  now  ape  the  stiff  fashions  of  England  and  France ;  and  a 
very  unbecoming  change  it  is,  in  almost  every  case. 

The  men  of  the  isles  are  more  faithful  than  the  women,  and 
retain  their  suit  of  sonsy  dark  blue  home-spun  and  broad  blue- 
bonnet  The  kilt  never  seems  to  have  found  favour  amongst  them. 
Happily  the  number  of  black  coats  and  hats  is  very  limited,  and 
you  see  at  a  glance  that  you  are  surrounded  by  a  race  of  hard- 
working fishers  and  shepherds. 

The  marvel  is  to  see  such  families  of  well  brushed-up  lads  and 
lassies — so  many,  and  so  well  grown — ^and  then  to  look  at  the  tiny 
bothy  whose  roof  is  home,  not  to  these  only,  but  probably  to  other 
sons  and  daughters  as  well,  who  have  gone  to  earn  their  bread  on 
the  mainland,  or  to  establish  far  more  pro8])erous  homes  in  distant 
lands  beyond  the  seas,  but  whose  hearts  are  so  warm  to  the  old 
home,  and  to  those  that  gather  round  its  hearth,  that  no  new  ties 
will  ever  fill  its  place.  A  steadfast  people  in  truth,  to  whom  the 
home  of  childhood,  how  homely  soever,  will  be  the  golden  mile- 
stone from  which  to  date  each  stage  of  life.  And  nowhere  are  the 
little  ones  more  deeply  cared  for,  and  more  heartily  welcomed.  Poor 
though  the  hearth  may  be,  that  house  is  reckoned  poorest  where 
the  quiver  is  empty,  for  the  Highlanders  say  that  a  home  without 
the  voices  of  children  is  dreary  as  a  farm  without  sheep  or  kye. 

The  bothies  are  all  much  alike  ;  there  are  generally  two  rooms  : 
the  outer  division  is  the  byre  for  the  cattle.  It  ia  not  cleaned  out 
very  often,  and  is  not  altogether  a  pleasant  entrance-hall ! 

Most  houses  have  a  double  wall  of  rough  unhewn  stone,  perhaps 
five  or  six  feet  thick,  the  interstices  being  crammed  with  heather 
and  turf.  On  the  inner  side  of  this  wall  rests  the  roof,  which 
consequently  acts  as  a  conduit  to  convey  all  the  rain  that  falls,  right 
into  the  middle  of  the  double  wall,  which  accordingly  is  always 
damp.  Hence  the  necessity  of  sleeping  in  box-beds,  which  form  a 
sort  of  wooden  lining  for  the  sleeping  comer.  Such  beds  are  stuffy, 
and  very  suggestive  of  the  probable  presence  of  noxious  insects,  but 
the  wooden  backs,  following  the  angle  of  the  roof,  protect  the 
sleepers  from  some  draughts  and  possible  rain-drip,  and  the  bedding 
looks  warm,  (md  as  clean  as  can  be  expected. 


A  HOME  IN  THE  ISLES.  129 

A  well-to-do  house  probably  has  a  window  at  the  end  where  the 
family  live.  It  cannot,  however,  be  very  efficient  in  the  way  of 
admitting  light,  since  it  is  merely  a  hole  from  twelve  to  eighteen 
inches  square,  and  only  partially  glazed,  about  half  the  space  being 
filled  up  with  turf.  A  misty  gleam,  however,  streams  through  the 
opening,  by  which  the  smoke  ought  to  escape,  but  the  interior  is 
chiefly  dependent  for  light  on  the  ever-open  doorway.  To  enable  the 
door  thus  to  do  double  work,  it  is  generally  made  in  two  halves,  the 
lower  half  being  frequently  closed,  while  the  upper  half  stands  open. 

If  you  approach  such  a  dwelling,  a  kindly  voice  will  assuredly 
bid  you  welcome  in  the  Gaelic  tongue  (for  they  "  have  no  English"), 
and  as  you  stoop  to  enter  the  low  doorway,  you  become  aware  that 
the  peat-reek  which  saturates  the  thatch,  likewise  fills  the  interior 
of  the  house  with  a  dense  blue  cloud,  stinging  and  choking  to 
unaccustomed  eyes  and  lungs.  Then  you  perceive  that  half  of  the 
house  is  devoted  to  the  cattle — is,  in  fact,  the  byre,  and  a  very  dirty 
byre  to  boot.  Here  stand  the  cow  and  her  calf,  or  maybe  a  goat  or 
two,  kept  for  milking. 

Possibly  a  rough  pony  is  grazing  near,  with  his  fore-legs  hobbled 
to  prevent  his  straying.  The  pig,  should  there  be  one,  likewise 
takes  care  of  itself  and  roams  about  outside,  for  that  household 
companion  of  the  Irish  Celt  is  not  a  welcome  inmate  here.  Indeed 
this  **  ginileman  who  pays  the  rint "  in  the  Emerald  Isle  (or  rather 
who  did  so  in  bygone  days)  is  by  no  means  a  common  possession  in 
these  Scottish  Isles,  where  the  domestic  pig  has  ever  been  held  in 
abhorrence  well-nigh  as  deep-seated  as  among  the  Hebrews. 

A  man  of  the  true  old  type  would  sooner  have  starved  than  have 
eaten  pork  or  pig's  flesh  in  any  form.  Now  the  old  prejudice  is  so 
far  modified  that  a  certain  number  of  *'  advanced  "  Celts  tolerate 
the  unclean  animal  as  a  marketable  article ;  but  they  are  still  in  a 
minority,  as  may  be  judged  from  the  fact  that  in  the  statistics  of 
the  Isle  of  Lewis  we  find  that  four  thousand  families  only  own 
one  hundred  and  fifty  pigs  amongst  them  all. 

Another  departure  from  old  tradition  is  shown  by  the  presence 
of  poultry,  the  use  of  which,  for  food,  would  have  been  as  repugnant 
to  an  ancient  Celt  as  would  have  been  that  of  a  goose  or  a  hare. 

K 


130  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

Now,  however,  the  "  croose  tappit  hen  **  is  in  high  favour,  and 
the  gude-wife*s  poultry  share  with  the  cat  and  her  kittens,  and  the 
handsome  Collie  dogs,  the  privilege  and  honours  of  the  inner  chamber. 
The  mother-hen  and  her  chickens  seek  for  crumbs  of  oat-cake  that 
may  have  been  dropped  by  the  bairns  on  the  earthen  floor,  while 
the  venerable  cock  and  the  other  members  of  his  family  roost  on  a 
well-blackened  rafter,  rejoicing  in  the  warm  smoke. 

So  also  apparently  does  the  kindly-looking  old  crone  in  the  large 
clean  white  cap,  bound  round  her  head  with  a  rusty  bLack  ribbon, 
who  bends  over  the  peat  fire,  turning  the  well-browned  oat-cakes 
on  the  flat  iron  girdle  which  hangs  from  a  heavy  chain,  suspended 
from  the  open  chimney,  down  which  streams  a  ray  of  light  which 
perchance  glances  on  the  blue  bonnet  and  silvery  hair  of  the  old 
grandfather,  who  sits  in  the  comer  quietly  knitting  his  stout  blue 
stockings,  and  perhaps  indulging  in  a  pipe  at  the  same  time.  A 
tidy  woman,  dressed,  like  all  the  family,  in  thick  warm  homespun, 
is  spinning  at  her  wheel, — the  most  picturesque  of  all  occupations, 
and  the  most  soothing  of  sounds.  I'ossibly  the  home  also  owns  a 
loom,  in  which  she  can  weave  the  yam  of  her  own  spinning,  and  so 
indeed  clothe  her  household  in  the  work  of  her  own  hands. 

Probably  the  baby  is  in  a  rough  wooden  cradle  at  her  side,  the 
bigger  bairns  being  away  at  the  school ;  and  wonderful  it  is  how 
the  baby  intellect  survives  the  terrible  shocks  of  such  rocking  as  is 
administered  by  the  maternal  foot,  working  in  sympathy  with  the 
busy  hand.  Near  the  fire  are  a  heap  of  peats,  drying  for  future 
use,  and  perhaps  some  tarry  wool,  and  a  coil  of  rope,  and  fishing- 
nets,  proving  that  here  farming  and  fishing  are  combined  professions.^ 

1  Unfortunately  all  homes  are  not  so  well  provided.  Here  are  a  few 
extracts  from  evidence  given  in  the  north  of  Skye. 

"  There  are,  on  our  township,  double  the  number  of  tenants  that  I  have  seen 
upon  it,  and  the  hill  pasture  was  taken  from  us.  We  were  ordered  not  to 
keep  a  single  sheep  when  the  pasture  was  taken.  We  were  told  we  would 
have  to  dispense  with  our  sheep,  or  give  up  our  holdings.  The  sheep  were 
sold  at  6«.  a  head.  We  were  for  several  years  without  sheep,  alter  which  the 
proprietor  gave  us  liberty  to  keep  five  or  six.  The  few  we  now  have  are 
spoiling  our  townships  for  want  of  pasture.  The  want  of  hill  grazing  is  very 
much  felt    It  prevents  us  from  keeping  some  sheep.    The  renUt  of  the  pre- 


USE  OF  OLD  MEAL  BAGS  AND  WHELK  SACKS.    131 

A  few  plates  and  bowls,  spoons  and*  wooden  porringers,  stand  on 
the  rude  dresser;  a  rickety  table,  a  few  stools  and  benches  (all 
probably  made  of  worm-eaten  driftwood),  complete  the  furniture, 
always  excepting  the  kid^  or  seaman's  chest,  which  contains  all  the 
Sunday  garments  of  the  family,  and  perhaps,  too,  the  carefully- 
treasured  winding-sheets,  prepared  by  the  good-wife  for  herself  and 
her  husband  against  the  day  when  they  will  surely  be  required — a 
day  that  is  often  in  their  thoughts,  not  as  the  end  of  life,  but  merely 
as  an  incident  in  the  journey  that  will  take  them  safely  to  the  only 
Land  that  is  more  to  be  desired  than  even  their  own  dear  Western 
Xslea — ^the  only  Home  that  could  be  dearer  than  this,  in  which  they 
have  dwelt  so  lovingly  ever  since  they  can  remember,  and  where 
most  likely  their  ancestors  for  many  generations  have  lived  and 
died. 

Many  of  these  houses  are  most  picturesque.  In  old  age  the 
thatch  acquires  a  canopy  of  gold  and  brown  velvety  moss,  and  is 


vention  is  that  many  of  us  have  no  better  bed-clothes  than  old  bags^  formerly 
used  in  conveying  whelks  to  Glasgow, 

^  Some  of  the  people  in  our  township  have  no  land  or  sheep,  and  are  so  poor 
that  they  are  ^isA  of  a  cast-off  oilskin.  Sometimes  when  a  poor  man  gets  a 
good  meal-bag  he  converts  U  into  underclothing, 

**  We  have  spinning-wheels  yet  A  man  who  lived  near  me  died  at  the  age 
of  one  hundred  and  five,  and  he  never  wore  anything  but  spun  clothes  made  by 
his  wife  and  daughter.  We  are  now  clothed  wiUi  south  country  clothing.  In  this 
respect  things  are  very  different  from  what  they  used  to  he.  There  are  distaflb 
to  be  seen  now.  Those  who  have  hill  pasture  with  sheep  upon  it  yet  have  clothing 
made  with  the  wool  of  their  own  sheep.  This  doth  costs  not  more  than  ISd. 
a  yard.    The  same  kind  of  stuff  costs  4s,  6d.  a  yard  if  bought  in  the  shopa 

*'  The  women  themselves  get  the  dye  stuflb  from  the  rocks.  They  can  get, 
perfai^pe,  nine  or  ten  different  ooloun  of  cloth  with  the  dye  stuffs  tiiey  make 
themselves.  They  dye  with  peat  soot,  lichen,  heather  tops,  and  tea,  but  tea 
is  too  dear  a  commodity  to  dye  much  with.  When  we  come  back  from  the 
south  country,  we,  perhaps,  buy  a  stone  of  wool  to  be  worked  up. 

A  **  merchant"  giving  his  evidence  says :  *'  The  people  are  buying  less  of 
some  sorts  of  goods,  but  more  meal.  They  are  more  deeply  in  debt  to  me  than 
ever.  I  know  the  people  are  getting  poorer,  and  that  there  are  ftunilies  in 
want  of  clothing  and  bed-clothes.  The  people  were  in  the  habit  of  making 
their  own  blankets  of  their  own  wool  Many  of  them  have  no  blankets. 
Perhaps  they  will  have  bags  over  than  at  night  J* 

K  2 


132  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

perhaps  also  adorned  with  so  rich  a  crop  of  grass  as  is  positively 
valuable  to  the  thrifty  gude-wife,  who,  mounting  on  the  roof  with 
her  rusty  sickle,  carefully  cuts  it  all  for  her  cow,  should  she  be  so 
fortunate  as  to  possess  one. 

The  roof  is  tied  on  with  a  perfect  net-work  of  straw  or  heather 
ropes,  and  weighted  by  large  stones,  to  resist  the  frightful  gusts  of 
wind,  which  would  carry  off  any  ordinary  cottage  roof.  A  wealthy 
man,  and  one  who  cares  about  trifles,  may  perhaps  put  up  an  old 
herring-barrel  to  act  as  a  chimney,  but,  as  a  general  rule,  there  is 
none,  and  the  blue  smoke  finds  its  way  out  where  it  can,  or  settles 
on  the  brown  rafters,  encrusting  the  hanging  cobwebs  with  thick 
peat-reek,  which  is  a  much  more  romantic  decoration  than  our 
common  domestic  soot!  As  years  wear  on,  even  oft-repeated 
patching  will  not  keep  the  decaying  roof  water-tight,  and  in  the 
heavy  rains  every  weak  corner  is  betrayed  by  a  ceaseless  drip  of 
diluted  soot,  establishing  black  puddles  on  the  earthen  floor,  or 
wherever  it  may  chance  to  fall.  When  the  roof  has  become  so 
thoroughly  saturated  with  this  rich  brown  grease  that  a  new  thatch 
becomes  necessary,  the  old  one  is  broken  up,  and  becomes  very 
valuable  as  manure  for  the  little  crofts  (though  some  say  that  soot 
thus  applied  merely  stimulates,  but  eventually  deteriorates  the 
land). 

Owing  to  the  great  difliculty  in  obtaining  timber,  the  real  value 
of  the  house  lies  in  its  rafters ;  these  are  for  the  most  part  the  gift 
of  the  sea  ;  sometimes  the  masts  of  some  poor  ship,  whose  crew  lie 
deep  beneath  the  waters  ;  oftener  some  grand  tree  torn  up  by  the 
mighty  tempests  that  months  before  raged  over  the  western  forests ; 
thence  floated  by  rushing  torrents  to  the  deep  sea,  to  become  the 
sport  of  the  waves,  and  the  home  of  strange  creatures,  animate 
and  inanimate — ^barnacles  and  limpets  and  many-coloured  weeds, 
which  the  builder  has  not  thought  it  worth  while  to  scrape  off,  so 
that  when,  after  a  few  months,  they  have  acquired  the  general  rich 
brown  hue  of  all  within  the  house,  they  might  very  well  pass 
muster  as  fine  old  oak  carving. 

As  to  the  roots  and  branches,  you  must  not  fancy  anything  so 
precious  is  used  for  firewood ;  each  little  chip  is  turned  to  some 


VANISHED  FORESTS.  133 

good  account ;  and  the  man  who  secures  a  good  log  of  driftwood 
has  found  a  prize  indeed.  Should  he  change  his  home  from  one 
village  to  another,  he  claims  compensation  from  his  successor  for 
the  roof  timber,  which  is  probably  his  most  valuable  possession. 
Hence  when  a  young  couple  are  courting,  their  wooing  and  cooing 
is  accompanied  by  a  most  serious  search  for  wood,  sticks,  straw,  and 
moss,  wherewith  to  build  and  thatch  their  future  nest.^ 

This  lack  of  timber  is  one  of  the  great  grievances  of  the  lairds, 
some  of  whom  keep  up  a  ceaseless  struggle  with  nature,  striving  to 
make  wood  grow  where  she  has  determined  to  have  none.  It  is 
vain  to  suggest  that  these  bare  moors  are,  at  least  in  this  present 
era,  the  true  character  of  the  country,  and  that  they  might  as  well 
try  to  change*  an  aquiline  nose  into  a  Koman  one.  The  struggle 
still  goes  on,  and  good  gold  is  sunk  in  hopeless  plantations  and 
great  stone  walls  to  protect  them  from  the  cutting  sea  blasts.  By 
dint  of  these,  the  young  trees  are  so  far  protected  that  they  do  get 
a  fair  start,  but  alas  for  the  proud  day  when  they  attempt  to  over- 
top that  kindly  shelter  I  Very  few  days  will  pass  before  they  are 
scorched  and  burnt  up,  as  if  by  a  furnace ;  and  it  seems  pretty 
clear  that  except  in  a  few  sheltered  nooks,  such  as  Armadale, 
Dunvegan,  and  Greshernish,  trees  will  not  grow. 

This  is  the  more  remarkable,  as  there  are  traces  in  different  parts 
of  the  Hebrides  of  the  comparative  abundance  of  timber  in  olden' 
days,  a  fact  to  which  Dean  Munro  alludes  when,  writing  in  a.d. 
1594,  he  speaks  of  Pabba  (now  a  low  grassy  island  lying  off  Broad- 
ford),  as  being  "  f uU  of  wodes,  and  a  main  shelter  for  thieves  and 
cut-throats."  With  respect  to  more  ancient  forests,  very  extensive 
tracts  exist  where  stems,  roots,  and  branches  of  large  trees,  are 
constantly  dug  up  in  the  peat  moss,  remains  both  of  hardwood  and 

'  All  of  which  sound  rather  romantic,  in  the  Robinson  Gnisoe  style.  The 
romance  however  fades  considerably,  when  we  face  the  unpoetic  details  of 
disputes  between  crofters  and  factors  concerning  the  gathering  of  shell-fish,— 
the  proclamations  of  legal  penalties  to  be  enacted  against  any  person  found 
carrying  away  drift-wood  from  the  shore,— indignant  gamekeepers  driving  off 
the  women  who  venture  to  pull  heather  for  thatch  or  ropes  from  their  own 
pastures,  the  number  of  days'  ;work  claimed  by  the  large  farmers  for  per- 
mission to  cut  rushes  from  the  sand-hills,  or  sea-ware  from  the  rocks. 


134  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

of  pine,  the  latter  being  invaluable  as  a  substitute  for  candles,  from 
the  clear  light  of  its  resinous  wood  ;  and  many  a  cosy  home-group 
gathei^  round  the  ingle  neuk,  listening  to  stories  of  the  old  days, 
while  one,  learned  in  legends  of  the  past,  tells  how  the  Norwegians 
swept  these  coasts,  and  burnt  all  the  old  forests,  leaving  traces  of 
their  devastations  even  to  this  day,  in  the  charred  and  blackened 
timber. 

In  many  instances,  fine  large  trunks  have  been  found  under  the 
present  sea-level,  covered  with  sea-weed  and  shells,  a  striking  proof 
of  the  gradual  encroachments  of  the  ocean  in  certain  districts.  It 
is  said  that  whole  tracts  of  land,  till  recently  under  cultivation, 
have  disappeared — or  are  now  so  covered  with  sand,  as  to  be  utterly 
worthless — very  much  in  the  same  way  as  a  great  portion  of  the 
"  Laich  of  Moray  "  was  submerged  by  those  fearful  inundations  at 
the  close  of  the  eleventh  century,  when,  says  Boethius,  *'  the  lands 
of  Godowine,  near  the  mouth  of  the  Thames,  and  likewise  the  land 
of  Moray  on  the  east  coast  of  Scotland,  together  with  many  villages, 
castles,  towns,  and  extensive  woods  both  in  England  and  Scotland, 
were  overwhelmed  by  the  sea,  and  the  labours  of  men  laid  waste 
by  the  discharge  of  sand  from  the  sea." 

One  curious  inference  drawn  from  the  class  of  timber  which 
formerly  flourished  in  these  islands  is,  that  a  very  marvellous  change 
in  climate  must  have  taken  place  in  comparatively  recent  ages. 
This  seems  to  corroborate  certain  statistical  accounts  of  the  temper- 
ature which  have  been  preserved  at  Kilwinning,  in  Ayrshire,  where, 
it  is  affirmed,  that  so  great  was  the  heat  in  the  month  of  May,  that 
farmers  had  to  leave  off  ploughing  at  8  a.m.,  and  could  not  resume 
work  before  4  p.m.  The  same  account  states  that  the  harvest  was 
finished  in  August — a  very  different  story  from  our  average  nowadays, 
when  a  harvest-home  in  September  marks  a  very  satisfactory  autumn ; 
while,  in  too  many  instances,  a  very  much  later  date  might  be  given. 

In  the  Hebrides  the  cereal  crops  are  always  a  matter  of  risk, 
owing  to  the  extreme  probability  of  prolonged  autumnal  rains ;  and 
it  is  only  too  common  to  see  the  crops  at  the  end  of  the  season  cut 
green,  and  only  fit  for  fodder.  In  truth,  the  patience  and  persever- 
ance of  the  poor  cotters,  who  continue  year  after  year  to  toil  in  such 


FISHING  AND  FARMINO.  135 

unprofitable  soil,   are  qualities  which  may  well  call  forth  our 
wondering  admiration. 

This  particular  district  of  Kilmuir,  has  the  happy  distinction  of 
having  from  time  immemorial  been  known  as  the  best  corn-pro- 
ducing portion  of  the  Isle — "The  granary  of  Skye."  A  hundred 
years  ago  Pennant  described  Uig  as  "  laughing  with  com/'  in  con- 
tradistinction to  other  districts  which  he  described  as  black  and 
pathless  bogs.  To  what  extent  this  superiority  may  rise  I  know 
noty  but,  in  a  general  way,  the  crofters  on  these  poor  lands  never 
look  for  a  return  exceeding  three  times  the  quantity  planted — many 
only  reap  one  and  a  half  times  what  they  sow !  (whereas  on  really 
good  soil  the  farmer  may  gamer  twelve  times  the  amount  of  seed 
sown). 

So  poor  are  the  harvests  of  the  land,  throughout  the  Western 
Isles  generally,  that  they  can  at  best  oidy  supplement  those  of  the 
sea,  and  these  vary  greatly  from  year  to  year.  So  essential  to  these 
small  crofters  is  this  combination  of  toils  by  sea  and  land,  that  out 
of  the  1780  occupants  of  land  in  Skye,  there  are  not  more  than  sixty 
who  are  not  also  fishermen.  This  double  profession  is  not  altogether 
advantageous,  however,  as  most  of  the  work  is  crowded  into  the 
summer,  and  one  labour  interferes  with  the  other.  Accessary  care 
for  the  land  detains  the  men,  so  that  they  start  late  for  the  fishery ; 
and  then,  again,  they  often  have  to  leave  the  fishing-ground  too 
soon,  lest  their  agricultural  work  should  suffer,  and  so  they  miss 
the  finest  shoals,  which  perhaps  come  just  after  they  have  left 
Thus  great  labour  is  often  expended  for  small  profit. 

Nevertheless  almost  every  able-bodied  man  on  the  Isles  counts 
on  making  his  principal  income  by  the  summer  herring-fishing, 
the  profits  on  which  (should  there  be  any)  afford  his  only  margin 
of  comfort  for  the  year.  For  it  is  a  rare  season  in  which  the  sterile 
soil  yields  a  sufficiency  of  grain  for  the  requirements  of  the  people, 
who  are  always  obliged  to  buy  meal,  and  are  dependent  on  the  sale 
of  their  fish  to  enable  them  to  obtain  their  simple  fare  of  oat-cake 
and  porridge. 

Any  failure  in  these  supplies  at  once  results  in  positive  distress. 
There  is  no  cutting  down  of  luxuries, — it  is  the  necessaries  of  life 


136  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

that  fail,  and  the  whole  population  is  at  once  plunged  into  absolute 
want.  Never  have  the  Isles  experienced  a  more  grievous  succession 
of  losses  than  those  of  1882,  which  have  resulted  in  such  wide- 
spread misery  that  those  dwelling  in  its  midst,  almost  despair  of 
coping  with  it.  Indeed  it  would  be  difficult  to  picture  a  condition 
of  more  utter  wretchedness  than  that  in  which  the  islanders  are 
now  plunged,  utterly  worsted  in  the  strife  with  the  adverse  forces 
of  nature. 

The  majority  do  not  say  much,  being  well-trained  to  suffer  in 
silence,  and  having  an  amazing  power  of  endurance  in  bearing 
troubles  which  they  believe  to  be  ordained  by  God.  No  Mahom- 
medan  submitting  to  the  irresistible  will  of  Allah  can  show  more 
fortitude  than  do  these  simple  Christian  folk.  "Our  people,"  says 
one  writing  on  their  behalf,  "  are  not  over-ready  to  complain." 

Norman  MacLeod  has  recorded  how,  in  a  year  of  terrible  destitu- 
tion in  the  Highlands,  he  was  present  at  the  first  distribution  of 
meal  in  a  remote  district.  A  party  of  poor  old  women  approached, 
their  clothes  patched  and  repatched,  but  very  clean.  They  had 
come  from  a  glen  far  inland  to  receive  a  dole  of  meal.  Never 
before  had  they  sought  alms,  and  sorely  did  they  shrink  from 
approaching  the  Committee.  At  last  they  deputed  one  woman  to 
go  forward  as  their  representative,  and  as  she  advanced  they  hid 
their  faces  in  their  tattered  plaids.  When  she  drew  near  she  could 
not  find  words  in  which  to  tell  her  tale,  but  she  bared  her  right 
arm,  reduced  by  starvation  to  a  mere  skeleton,  and  stretching  it 
towards  the  Committee,  burst  into  tears,  and  her  bitter  sobs  told 
their  own  tale  of  anguish. 

That  scene  might  be  enacted  again  this  day  in  a  thousand  districts 
in  the  Highlands  and  Isles,  where  nothing  approaching  to  the 
present  distress  has  been  experienced  during  the  last  thirty  years. 
It  has  been  rightly  said,  that  there  could  be  no  surer  test  of  dire 
need  than  that  these  people  should  so  far  conquer  their  proverbial 
"  Highland  pride  "  as  even  now  to  reveal  the  depths  of  their 
poverty. 

The  tale  of  woe  of  1882  practically  commenced  in  the  previous 
year,  when  a  wQd  storm  destroyed  many  of  the  boats.     Local  sub- 


"TROUBLES  NEVER  COME  SINGLY."  137 

scriptions,  however,  went  far  towards  covering  this  loss — and  the 
men  went  off  in  high  hope  to  the  herring  fishery  on  the  East  coast. 
It  proved  (^n  absolute  failure,  and  at  the  close  of  the  season,  many 
crews  returned  home  penniless,  having  had  to  borrow  necessary 
funds  from  the  fish-curers.  Later  in  the  season,  the  ling  fishery,  to 
which  they  looked  for  the  recovery  of  some  of  their  losses,  proved  an 
absolute  blank.  Thus  the  islanders  were  left  entirely  dependent  on 
the  return  of  their  scanty  crops.  But  here  again  they  found  that 
they  had  spent  their  strength  for  nought,  and  all  their  toil  had 
been  in  vain. 

First  the  potato  crop  proved  an  utter  failure.  As  the  summer 
wore  on,  the  blackening  shaws  grievously  suggested  the  approach 
of  the  too  familiar  blight.  Even  where  the  best  seed  had  been 
planted  in  the  best  soil,  the  result  was  alike  disheartening.  In 
place  of  large  mealy  potatoes,  the  luckless  planters  gathered  a  small 
crop  of  worthless  watery  roots,  smaller  than  walnuts.  One  man 
tells  how  he  has  only  raised  five  barrels  from  the  very  same  ground 
which  generally  yields  thirty  barrels.  Another  planted  eight  and  a 
half  barrels  of  seed  potatoes  and  only  raised  two  and  a  half.  Others 
proved  their  crops  so  hopeless,  that  it  was  literally  not  worth  the 
exertion  of  turning  the  ground  to  seek  for  the  few  half-diseased 
roots  that  might  have  been  obtained. 

Mr.  Mackay,  Chamberlain  for  Lewis,  stated  that  in  one  parish  he 
set  two  men  to  dig,  in  order  to  raise  as  many  potatoes  as  possible, 
and  all  they  were  able  to  get,  after  working  from  ten  in  the  morning 
till  four  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  was  about  a  basketful. 

The  testimony  of  the  clergy  writing  from  the  neighbourhood  of 
Stornaway,  and  from  the  district  of  Barvas,  was  heart-rending.  They 
told  of  the  sick  and  suffering,  of  feeble  women  and  aged  men  who, 
in  the  extremity  of  iUness,  possessed  only  a  few  small  diseased 
potatoes.  They  told  of  houses  in  which  parents  watched  tenderly  by 
dying  children,  but  their  bitter  lamentations  were  not  for  the  dying, 
but  for  the  living  children  who  were  well-nigh  starving.  The  teachers 
in  the  schools  state  that  a  large  proportion  of  children  in  attendance, 
many  of  whom  have  travelled  long  distances  from  their  homes,  have 
actually  done  so  without  a  morning  meal  of  any  sort.    And  they 


138  m  THE  HEBRIDES. 

themselves  have  little  or  nothing  to  give.  The  parish  ministers  say 
truly  that  these  are  people  who  are  not  inclined  to  cry  out  for  a 
small  matter — nothing  short  of  extreme  need  would  have  induced  them 
to  apply  for  aid.     But  what  can  men  do  in  the  face  of  starvation  1 

As  long  as  there  was  the  prospect  of  a  tolerable  grain-crop,  they 
kept  up  a  brave  heart — ^though  well. aware  how  scanty  must  be  the 
supply,  with  neither  potatoes  nor  herring  to  look  to.  Still,  the 
harvest  promised  fair,  and  ripened  so  well  that  by  the  end  of  Sep- 
tember all  was  cut,  and  ready  for  carrying.  But  on  the  night  of 
the  1st  October  a  terrible  gale  swept  over  the  land,  to  the  utter 
destruction  of  both  grain  and  hay  crops.  The  small  stooks  still 
stood  ungarnered  in  the  fields,  all  ready  for  stacking,  when  the 
tremendous  storm  burst  upon  the  unsheltered  shores,  and  carried 
them  away  as  though  they  had  been  so  m»ny  feathers.  Some  were 
carried  miles  inland,  and  scattered  over  the  hill-sides ;  some  were 
scattered  along  the  sea-beach,  others  carried  far  out  to  sea. 

When  the  fury  of  the  gale  subsided,  all  that  remained  of  this — 
the  last  resource  of  the  people^— the  produce  of  their  year's  toil — 
was  some  widely-scattered  damaged  straw,  with  all  the  grain  beaten 
out  of  it.  One  man  reports  that  on  the  morning  of  the  gale  he 
owned  three  hundred  stooks  uf  barley  ;  of  these,  he  was  only  able 
to  save  thirty.  Another,  who  is  generally  able  to  make  seven  bolls 
of  barley-meal,  has  this  year  failed  to  make  one  pound. 

From  every  corner  of  the  Isles,  comes  the  same  tale  of  distress, 
only  varying  a  little  in  degree.  Here  is  the  report  of  a  fairly 
typical  village  in  the  parish  of  Duirinish,  in  Skye.  It  containa 
thirty-seven  houses,  with  a  population  of  189  persons.  From  this 
village  about  sixty  men  went  to  the  herring  fishing  on  the  East 
coast,  but  the  whole  result  was  only  twenty-one  barrels,  worth  about 
£60,  to  be  divided  among  the  whole  community — a  poor  reward 
for  the  long  and  arduous  toil  involved. 

The  crofters  of  this  township  planted  171  boUs  of  potatoes,  but 
in  the  autumn  they  lifted  only  215  bolls.  In  seed  time  they  sowed 
156  bolls  of  oats,  but  in  the  harvest  they  garnered  only  136  1  So 
that  on  the  grain  crop  all  their  toil  resulted  in  dead  loss. 

The  townships  own  twenty-three  cows.     In  the  spring  of  1883 


HARD  TIMES.  139 

these  were  yielding  only  eleven  quarts  of  milk  a  day — ^not  a  very 
abundant  supply  for  189  porridge-consuming  men,  women,  and 
children! 

Their  sole  remaining  source  of  revenue  was  from  their  hens,  which 
yielded  an  average  of  sixty-two  eggs  per  diem. 

To  add  to  the  wretchedness  of  their  destitution,  they  had  to 
endure  the  bitter  cold  of  a  prolonged  winter,  beside  a  dreary,  almost 
fireless  hearth,  for  the  long  summer  rains  which  reduced  the  hay  to 
a  sodden  pulp,  prevented  the  newly-cut  peats  from  drying.  So  they 
remained  like  heavy  wet  bricks,  piled  on  the  peat  moss,  and  there 
in  some  districts  they  still  lay,  saturated, — when  the  wild  October 
gale  came  and  whirled  them  back  into  the  peat-bogs  whence  they 
had  been  cut  with  so  much  labour. 

One  glimmer  of  hope  remained  in  the  prospect  of  the  winter 
haddock-fishing,  which  in  some  years  proves  fairly  lucrative.  Last 
year,  however,  it  proved  an  absolute  failure,  and  for  the  third  time 
in  one  year,  the  poor  disheartened  fellows  returned  to  their  sad 
homes,  with  empty  boats,  to  face  long  months,  during  which  no 
alleviation  could  be  hoped  for.  So  in  the  spring  of  1883,  many 
thousands  of  persons,  in  every  part  of  the  North-western  Islands 
and  Highlands,  stood  in  absolute  need  of  everything, — dependent  on 
the  charity  of  the  more  fortunate  dwellers  on  the  mainland  for 
actual  daily  bread,  as  well  as  for  seed-com  and  seed-potatoes  for  the 
future. 

This  is  no  story  of  want  resulting  from  improvidence,  for  the 
people  are  careful  and  frugal,  and  (though  very  slow  in  their  move- 
ments, and  occasionally  making  matters  worse  than  they  need  be, 
by  procrastination,  or  by  the  listlessness  bom  of  vainly  fighting 
against  circumstances,  to  say  nothing  of  the  depression  produced  by 
constant  under-feeding)  it  is  certainly  unjust  to  call  them  idle — 
many  are  hard-working.  ''A  patient,  industrious,  God-fearing 
people  **  is  the  description  given  of  them  by  those  who  know  them 
best ;  and  their  life  in  most  prosperous  times  would  seem  to  us  to  be 
one  of  exceeding  hardship — a  life  in  which  luxury  is  an  altogether 
unknown  term,  and  a  bare  subsistence  is  hardly  wrung,  by  ceaseless 
toil,  from  the  unfertile  land  and  stormy  waves. 


140  m  THE  HEBRIDES. 

Even  in  what  is  called  a  "  good  year,  when  the  fishing  has  been 
successful,  and  the  grain  and  potato  crops  have  been  safely  garnered 
— when  the  harvest  of  the  sea,  and  of  the  land,  have  alike  been 
above  the  average — the  islanders  can  barely  make  a  living  and  pay 
their  rents ;  yet,  being  generous  and  warm-hearted,  they  contrive 
80  to  divide  their  pittance,  as  to  provide  meal  and  potatoes  for  the 
widows  and  orphans,  and  such  other  members  of  the  community  as 
have  none  to  work  for  them.  No  light  undertaking,  when  we 
consider  that  in  one  parish  alone,  which  may  be  accepted  as  a  fair 
type  of  others,  it  has  been  calculated  that  out  of  a  population  of 
5000  persons,  1400  may  be  classed  as  poor  relations,  living  by  suffer- 
ance on  the  tiny  land-lots  of  their  friends,  and  in  a  great  measure 
supported  by  them. 

Of  course  the  distress  in  many  districts  has  been  intensified  by 

this  lamentable  system  of  over-crowding,  but  these  poor  islanders, 

with  their  deeply-rooted  love  of  home,  are  slow  to  learn  the  lesson 

of  the  bees,  and  to  send  off  voluntary  swarms  to  commence  new 

colonies  in  unpeopled  regions.     It  has  required  the  pressure  of  the 

oft-repeated  years  of  famine,  and  strong  persuasion  to  boot,  in  order 

to  establish  those  very  Highland  communities  in  various  parts  of 

the  world,  where,  to  this  day,  the  second  and  third  generations  of 

flourishing  colonists,  speak  no  language  but  Gaelic,  and  will  call  no 

place  by  the  sacred  name  of  "  home  "  save  those  far-distant  Isles, 

which  their  own  eyes  have  never  beheld — but  to  which  their  hearts 

turn  with  such  intensity  of  patriotic  love.     To  this  day,  Wilson's 

words  express  the  true  feeling  of  thousands  of  these  prosperous 

exiles. 

''  From  the  dim  shieling  on  the  misty  island, 
Mountains  divide  us,  and  a  world  of  seas, 
But  still  our  hearts  are  true — our  hearts  are  Highland, 
And  we,  in  dreams,  behold  the  Hebrides ! " 

Doubtless  the  poetic  love  of  nature,  and  leal  patriotism,  so  charac- 
teristic of  the  Celt,  is  considerably  strengthened  by  the  general  use 
of  the  Gaelic  language,  which,  while  it  cuts  off  these  people  from 
general  communication  with  the  outer  world,  keeps  in  habitual  use 
a  phraseology  peculiar  to  themselves,  full  of  images  drawn  from  the 
world  of  nature. 


THE  MOTHER  TONGUE.  141 

At  the  present  moment,  though  so  great  a  multitude  of  Scotland's 
sons  have  emigrated  to  all  parts  of  the  world  (there  to  form  Gaelic 
colonies  in  which  no  other  tongue  is  spoken),  there  remain  in 
the  four  counties  of  Sutherland,  Boss  (which  includes  Cromarty), 
Inverness,  and  Argyle,  upwards  of  one  hundred  and  eighty-four 
thousand  persons  who  habitually  use  the  Gaelic  language. 

Out  of  a  total  population  of  3,735,573,  it  is  found  that  231,594 
of  our  Scottish  people  still  use  the  old  Celtic  tongue.  Of  these 
151,244  represent  all  parts  of  the  Highlands,  while  the  remaining 
80,350  abide  in  the  Western  Isles,  in  most  of  which  English  is 
still  an  almost  unknown  tongue.^  This  in  itself  explains  one  great 
secret  of  the  aversion  felt  by  the  islanders  to  going  forth  to  seek 
work  on  the  mainland,  where  they  are  well  aware  that  thej  will 
have  to  fight  life's  battle  amongst  men  who  are  to  them  a  foreign 
race,  and  to  whom  their  tongue  is  an  uncouth,  incomprehensible 
jargon. 

It  is  somewhat  remarkable,  by  the  way,  to  learn  that  at  five-sixths 
of  the  two  hundred  Board-Schools,  attended  by  the  twenty  thousand 
Gaelic-speaking  children,  there  is  actually  no  provision  for  teaching 
them  to  read  their  own  language,  nor  does  there  appear  to  be  any 
reasonable  prospect  of  such  teaching  being  provided.  Even  in  the 
remaining  one-sixth  the  provision  is  very  inadequate.  Under  these 
circumstances  it  is  difficult  to  understand  what  advantage  the 
children  are  to  derive  from  compulsory  school  attendance,  unless 
the  art  of  reading  English  like  parrots  be  accounted  sufficient    For 

^  It  may  surprise  some  to  leam  that  according  to  the  ceDsus  for  1881  there 
are  stiU  in  Scotland  so  large  a  number  of  persons  whose  natural  language  is 
Gaelic,  and  of  whom  many  thousands  can  understand  no  other  liuiguage. 
These,  with  the  exception  of  18^960,  all  inhabit  the  northern  part  of  Scotland 
and  the  Western  Isles. 

So  remarkable  is  the  complete  difference  of  race  between  the  inhabitants 
of  the  Hebrides,  and  those  of  our  northern  groups,  that  in  the  Shetland 
Isles  only  twelve  persons,  and  in  Orkney  only  thirty-six,  are  foimd  who  can 
speak  Qaelic.  These  groups  were  entirely  colonized  by  Norwegians,  and  their 
present  language  is  ordinaiy  Scotch,  with  a  Quaker-like  use  of  "  thou  "  instead 
of  «  you." 

In  Irekmd  1,000,000  persons  understand  Erse,  and  163,000  cannot  speak 
English! 


142  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

all  instruction  given  in  such  form  as  they  can  understand,  they  are 
dependent  on  the  voluntary  exertions  of  the  Gaelic  School  Society. 

Doubtless  the  School  Board  authorities  suppose  that  by  ignoring 
Gaelic  in  school  teaching,  a  useful  blow  may  be  struck  at  its 
existence,  and  the  time  hastened  when  it  shall  cease  to  be  a  dis- 
tinctive language.^  Little  do  such  judges  know  of  its  amazing 
hold  on  the  love  of  the  people — such  a  hold  that  even  in  far 
countries  to  which  Gaelic-speaking  Islanders  and  Highlanders 
drifted  two  or  three  generations  back,  not  a  word  of  English  is 
spoken  to  this  day;  indeed  so  carefully  have  the  children  been 
taught  their  mother  tongue  in  its  purity,  that  the  descendants  of 
Skye  men,  Harris  men,  or  men  of  Argyle,  can  still  recognize  one 
another  by  the  peculiarities  of  dialect,  only  to  be  detected  by  their 
own  keen  ears. 

I  know  of  at  least  one  such  village  in  the  province  of  Auckland 
in  New  Zealand,  and  am  told  that  many  such  exist  in  the  Southern 
Isle.     Far  in  all  parts  of  the  wilds  of  British  North  America  such 

^  With  reference  to  the  School  Board  providing  only  English  teachers  for 
Gaelic-speaking  children,  in  the  course  of  evidence  given  before  the  Royal 
Commission  in  the  Lews,  one  of  the  delegates  stated  that  ''their  objection 
to  the  present  mode  of  education  was  that  the  old  book  that  God  Almighty  had 
given  them  for  their  salvation  was  just  treated  as  a  by-play  at  skip— that  was, 
just  a  slap  and  be  done  with  it.  The  children  did  not  get  half  enough  of 
religious  instruction  in  the  schools.'' 

Q.—Do  they  learn  the  Shorter  Catechism  ?  A,—Aj;  the  easy  bits  at  the 
beginning,  but  nothing  else. 

Q.—Do  they  learn  the  Bible  in  Gaelic  ?  A.— Not  a  word  but  English,  which 
they  don't  understand. 

John  Munro,  twenty-three,  teacher  of  the  Public  School,  Ness,  said  he  had 
been  two  and  a  half  years  in  his  present  situation.  He  was  a  native  of  Ross- 
shire,  and  could  understand  Gaelic  better  than  he  could  speak  it .  He  possessed 
sutRcient  of  it  to  make  it  useful  to  him  in  teaclung.  The  children  were  taught 
in  English,  and  the  Shorter  Catechism  was  also  taught  in  English. 

Q. — Do  you  think  that  in  most  cases  the  religious  instruction  and  the 
teaching  of  the  Shorter  Catechism  are  reasonably  understood,  or  were  they 
learnt  by  rote  7    ^.— In  most  cases  it  was  learnt  by  rote. 

Q.— Was  the  religious  instruction  as  well  understood  as  it  could  be  in  an 
ordinary  school  7  il.— That  could  not  be  quite  the  case,  because  they  had 
not  the  same  command  of  the  English  language. 


OUB  CELTIC  COLONIES.  143 

colonies  are  scattered.  Canada  has  no  population  more  intensely 
loyal  than  her  true  Highlanders,  all  bom  on  her  shores,  and  who 
probably  have  never  left  them,  but  are  nevertheless  whole-hearted 
Scotchmen,  keeping  up  all  old  customs,  singing  the  old  Gaelic 
songs  in  the  old  style,  and  ready  to  welcome  with  ecstatic  delight 
the  stranger  who  can  accost  them  in  their  mother-tongue,  thereby 
proving  it  to  be  his  own,  for  it  is  a  language  that  few  have  been 
able  to  acquire,  save  those  to  whom  its  accents  come  as  a  birthright. 

One  of  the  principal  colonies  of  Gkielic-speaking  Canadians  is 
that  of  Stomoway,  a  flourishing  town,  so  named  in  memory  of  the 
barren  shores  of  Lewia  Here  three  thousand  Highlanders,  strong 
in  ancestral  tradition,  are  ready  to  welcome  fresh  colonists  from  the 
old  land,  for  whose  behoof  large  tracts  of  land  have  been  laid  out 
in  lota  of  a  hundred  acres,  offered  for  sale  at  £1  per  acre,  payable 
in  the  course  of  ten  years.  On  each  of  these  lots  ten  acres  have 
already  been  cleared  and  are  ready  for  crops ;  the  remaining  ninety 
acres  are  still  in  forest,  and  furnish  abundant  timber  for  the 
lumberer. 

Perhaps  the  strangest  instance  of  the  survival  of  the  Graelic 
tongue  and  Highland  sjrmpathy  is  to  be  found  in  the  American 
State  of  South  Carolina,  where  we  should  have  supposed  that  the 
American  nationality,  which  swallows  up  all  others,  assimilating 
them  to  itself,  would  assuredly  have  likewise  absorbed  the  Celtic 
colonists.  But  here,  on  the  contrary,  so  strongly  has  the  line  of 
demarcation  been  kept  up  for  upwards  of  a  century,  that  to  this 
day  there  are  about  fifteen  Presbyterian  churches,  filled  by  con- 
gregations bom  in  South  Carolina,  and  who,  understanding  no 
language  save  Gaelic,  are  instmcted  solely  by  Gaelic  pastors  bom 
in  the  colony.  Every  circumstance  of  life  has  altered — independence 
and  comparative  wealth  have  taken  the  place  of  the  poverty  which 
drove  their  fathers  from  their  loved  Isles  or  Highlands,  yet  the 
new  country  in  which  they  have  found  these  blessings  has  but 
a  secondary  place  in  their  love,  for  they  are  still  Highlanders  at 
heart,  and  they  still  speak  of  the  moorland,  which  their  own  eyes 
have  never  seen,  as — Home. 

In  the  present  instance,  the  wide-spread  distress  of  so  many 


144  IN    THE   HEBRIDES. 

thousands  of  innocent  sufferers  has  most  unfortunately  b^n  made 
the  occasion  of  such  virulent  contests,  between  the  advocates  of 
compulsory  emigration,  and  those  who  believe  that  by  a  new  division 
of  farms  and  pasture-lands,  the  north-country  could  feed  all  her 
hardy  sons,  and  retain  their  strength  in  her  own  service, — that 
party-strife  has  waxed  hot  on  this  battle-field,  and  the  various 
Relief  Committees  complain  bitterly  that  the  tide  of  charity  has 
been  checked,  and  that  they  are  consequently  left  without  the 
necessary  funds  to  relieve  pressing  cases  of  want ;  so,  while  the  few 
are  battling  over  political  questions,  the  many  are  compelled  to 
endure  extreme  want  in  silence  and  despair. 

In  the  5''ear  of  my  visit  to  the  Isles,  there  was  happily  no  such 
time  of  trial — all  was  going  on  well — the  season  was  favourable — 
the  pastures  abundant — the  crops  ripening  fairly  under  the  influence 
of  an  unusual  predominance  of  sunshine. 

To  us  (as  to  all  visitors  from  the  mainland),  the  primitive  agri- 
cultural implements  in  common  use,  were  objects  of  wonder  and  of 
interest,  and  many  a  time  we  halted  to  watch  the  patient  toilers  at 
their  slow  and  weary  work.  The  quaintest  of  their  tools  is  the 
Caschrom  or  wooden  plough,  consisting  of  a  bent  handle  four  or  five 
feet  long,  to  which  is  attached  a  piece  of  wood  like  a  long  pointed 
foot  shod  with  iron  ;  this  is  propelled  by  the  ploughman's  own  foot. 
Sometimes  it  is  made  more  like  a  spade,  which  digs  into  the  ground, 
instead  of  scratching  it.  And  with  this  curious  tool,  the  little  fields 
or  small  crofts  are  worked.  The  only  marvel  is  that  it  should  act 
at  all,  but  the  soil  is  so  light  that  after  rains  which  would  convert 
most  places  into  morasses,  half  an  hour's  sun  makes  the  dust  fly, 
and  in  order  to  enrich  it,  we  see  the  people  dig  sea-weed  into  the 
earth  as  a  manure — sea-weed  which  they  must  first  purchase  the 
right  to  collect,  and  then  carry  on  their  backs  in  wicker  baskets, 
for  perhaps  several  miles  up  hill.^     This  perpetual  use  of  sea-ware 

^  One  man  having  told  the  Royal  Commission  how,  on  the  establishment  of 
large  sheep  farms,  he  was  first  forbidden  any  longer  to  keep  sheep,  added — 
"  We  were  next  forbidden  to  keep  horses,  and  had  to  do  their  work  by  cany- 
ing  burdens  on  our  backs.  Daring  the  last  year  I  have  put  on  my  land  200 
creels  of  sea-weed,  all  which  I  have  had  to  carry  myself.  In  ascending  from 
the  shore  to  our  township,  the  brae  is  so  steep  that  we  have  to  hold  on  by  our 


"  A  BARREN  LAND,  AND  A  POOR."  145 

docs  not  seem  to  be  alto<vetlier  advantageous,  as  it  is  said  to  destroy 
the  tenacity  of  the  soil,  and  renders  it  more  liable  to  be  washed 
away  by  every  falling  rain.  It  is,  however,  a  necessary  evil,  the 
crofts  being  now  so  small,  that  it  is  impossible  for  these  very  poor 
farmers  ever  to  let  a  field  lie  fallow,  so  that  the  land,  having  been 
made  to  yield  the  same  crops  for  fifty  or  sixty  years  without  any 
rotation,  is  naturally  exhausted,  and  becomes  less  productive  year 
by  year. 

When  the  fields  are  thus  ploughed  by  hand,  a  couple  of  lassies 
will  yoke  themselves  to  the  harrow,  and  work  bravely  for  hours, 
dragging  it  to  and  fro,  over  the  rough  ground.  It  is  a  rough  and 
ready  harrow,  on  which  are  laid  branches  of  furze,  heavily  weighted 
with  stones.  Such  work  must  be  tolerably  exhausting,  yet,  when 
evening  comes,  these  lassies  (who  do  not  look  specially  robust) 
must,  perhaps, "  travel "  eight  or  nine  miles  across  the  hills,  carrying 
on  their  back  some  heavy  box  just  brought  by  the  steamer,  or  else 
a  sack  of  potatoes,  or  a  creel  of  peats. 

It  is  a  hard  life,  of  never-ending  and  ill-requited  toil,  and  the 
struggle  for  existence  becomes  harder  year  by  year,  as  the  land 
becomes  more  impoverished  by  the  effort  to  yield  the  self-same 
crops  for  generation  after  generation, — the  soil  ever  deteriorating, 
and  the  mouths  to  be  fed  ever  increasing  in  number.  Many  a  pang 
of  hunger  and  cold  and  weariness  have  these  men  and  women 
endured,  without  a  murmur,  as  beseems  thoroughbred  Islesmen  and 
Highlanders  ;  who  would  have  fallen  low  indeed  in  their  own  eyes, 
should  they  betray  symptoms  of  any  such  weakness. 

They  are  real  gentlemen  in  their  way,  with  delicate  inborn  tact, 
and  all  the  naturally  courteous  instincts  of  good  breeding ;  and, 

hands."  Another  says :  "  We  feel  it  to  be  a  great  grievance  that  we  are  pre- 
vented by  the  smaUness  of  our  crofts  from  keeping  a  horse  to  help  us  with  the 
tillage,  as  it  is  laborious  and  even  degrading  for  women  and  men  to  have 
to  carry  all  manure  and  sea- ware  on  our  backs.  My  son  and  myself  worked 
all  last  winter,  carrying  soil  from  the  knolls  and  spreading  it  on  the  land."  A 
third  states :  "  1  put  out  work  on  my  croft  and  tried  to  improve  it,  and  my 
reward  was  that  my  rent  was  raised  5«.  in  the  £1.  I  did  no  more  for  it  I 
had  worked  like  a  horse,  going  four  miles  for  mud  for  soil" 

L 


146  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

moreoYer,  with  a  keen  perception  of  all  that  marks  true  breeding  in 
others ;  as  well  as  the  pride  born  of  self-respect.  This  is  the  key 
to  that  which  does  so  puzzle  Englishmen,  in  the  perfectly  familiar 
intercourse  existing  between  class  and  class,  yet  never  breed- 
ing contempt;  every  detail  connected  with  the  laird's  kith  and 
kin,  having  ever  been  treated  by  the  people  as  a  matter  of  personal 
interest 

Notwithstanding  the  sparks  of  antagonism  between  class  and 
class,  which  have  recently  been  so  carefully  kindled,  and  fostered, 
by  party  agitators,  the  deep-seated  feeling  of  real  allegiance  to  the 
old  blood — the  hereditary  owners  of  the  soil — happily  still  exists, 
though  in  too  many  cases  grievously  weakened  by  the  lack  of  per- 
sonal intercourse,  and  by  the  slowly  realized  conviction  that  the 
pecuniary  value  of  estates  has,  in  some  instances,  been  more  con- 
sidered than  the  interests  of  those  dwelling  thereon.  In  other  cases 
the  Sassenach  and  his  gold  have  the  sway,  and  hold  the  broad  lands, 
while  the  descendants  of  the  old  stock  seek  their  fortunes  in  far 
countries ;  and  it  can  scarcely  be  supposed  that  the  affection  of  the 
people  can  be  bought  with  the  land. 

There  is  one  advantage  possessed  by  the  Isles,  which  at  a  first 
glance  we  could  scarcely  expect,  namely,  the  unusual  mildness  of 
their  climate.  Heavy  as  is  the  rainfall,  they  enjoy  a  singular  im- 
munity from  biting  frosts — a  peculiarity  which  attracted  our  atten- 
tion in  Cantyre,  and  which  is  said  to  be  especially  true  of  the 
remote  lale  of  St.  Kilda,  which  is  more  fully  subject  to  the  warm 
currents  of  the  Gulf  Stream. 

Nevertheless,  strange  things  sometimes  drift  ashore,  which  tell 
rather  of  having  floated  down  from  chilling  northern  latitudes. 
Sometimes  large  fragments  of  ice,  and  once  a  great  walrus  found  its 
way  hither,  having  probably  sailed  along  unsuspiciously  on  some 
detached  fragment  of  his  iceberg.  His  head  is  still  preserved,  as 
that  of  so  rare  a  guest  deserved  to  be. 

Speaking  of  rare  guests,  you  will  not  travel  far  in  Skye  before 
hearing  anecdotes  of  the  pompous  Dr.  Johnson  and  his  little  friend 
"  Eozzy."  Almost  the  first  drive  we  were  taken  from  Uig  was  to 
see  Kingsburgh  House,  as  being  the  place  where  Flora  Macdonald 


DR.   JOHNSON.  147 

entertained  them.  To  us  it  had  far  more  interest  as  being  that  in 
which,  many  years  before,  in  the  days  of  her  youth  and  beauty, 
she  and  her  princely  maid,  Betty  Burke,  had  found  shelter  and 
safety.  But  we  heard  so  many  legends  of  Prince  Charlie's  hair- 
breadth escapes  among  these  islands,  that  I  will  tell  you  what  we 
gathered  on  that  subject  in  a  more  connected  fonn. 

I  do  not  mean  to  say  that  we  withheld  our  tribute  of  admiration 
from  the  brave  old  man,  the  City-bred  philosopher,  who,  at  the  age 
of  sixty-four,  forsook  the  luxury  of  London  clubs,  and,  though 
suffering  from  his  sight,  and  heavy  alike  from  disease  and  from  his 
naturally  unwieldy  size,  yet  determined  to  behold  with  his  own 
eyes  those  barren  Hebrides,  which  had  appeared  to  him  in  faraway 
visions,  grey  and  dreamy,  as  he  sat  by  his  comfortable  board  in 
Fleet  Street. 

So,  like  a  true  pilgrim,  he  started  on  that,  then  difficult,  journey 
to  lona,  and  thence  to  Isles  further  still,  tossing  about  on  stormy 
nights  in  an  open  sailing-boat ;  riding  rough  Highland  ponies,  or 
even  trudging  wearily  on  tired  feet  over  moor  and  mountain,  through 
scenery  that  to  him  seemed  only  grim  and  savage.  Kothing  daunted 
by  storms  and  discomforts,  he  pursued  his  way,  seeking  for  Ossian 
and  for  trees.  Fancy  a  man  with  no  Gaelic  hoping  to  find  Ossian ! 
He  tested  his  drinking  capacity  against  that  of  seasoned  whisky- 
loving  lairds,  and  tried  to  deepen  the  impression  he  had  made  on 
their  women-folk,  by  keepsakes  of  such  light  literature  as  odd 
volumes  of  arithmetic  !  The  poor  man  even  tried  to  get  up  a  due 
appreciation  of  the  pipes  by  standing  with  his  ear  close  to  the 
drone,  enduring  silent  martyrdom  without  wincing,  thinking  thereby 
to  test  his  fine  ear  for  music  I 

How  little  he  or  his  entertainers  could  have  foreseen  how  each 
little  detail  of  their  intercourse  was  destined  to  become  historical, 
thanks  to  the  ever  ready  note-book  of  his  faithful  chronicler  ! 

Between  Elingsburgh  and  Uig  there  is  an  old  ruin  on  a  cliff  over- 
hanging the  sea,  a  pleasant  spot  in  which  to  bask  away  the  sunny 
hours — the  blue  Cuchullins  making  a  lovely  background  to  the  grey 
walls.  This  Castle  Ustian  (or  Hugh's  Castle)  was  built  in  the  time 
of  James  VI.  by  Hugh  Macdonald,  as  a  place  of  refuge.     It  had  no 

L  2 


148  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

windows,  or  any  means  of  access,  except  a  small  door  high  in  the 
wall,  to  which  its  master  climhed  by  a  ladder,  which  he  then  pulled 
up  after  him ;  and  could  rest*  tolerably  secure  as  long  as  his  pro- 
visions lasted. 

.  Being  next  of  kin  to  Donald  Gorm  Mor,  the  chief,  he  seems  to 
have  been  weary  of  waiting  for  dead  men's  shoes ;  and,  having 
induced  some  of  his  neighbours  to  form  a  conspiracy  against  his 
uncle,  they  formally  drew  up  a  bond,  which  they  all  signed.  This 
compact  was  left  in  the  hands  of  one,  Macleod.  It  seems  that  this 
man  had  previously  received  a  bond  from  a  cattle-dealer,  for  monies 
due  to  him,  and  on  this  being  reclaimed,  Macleod,  who  could 
neither  write  nor  read,  gave  the  drover  the  wrong  document,  which 
quickly  found  its  way  to  the  chief.  The  latter  generously  deter 
mined  to  meet  this  villiany  with  chivalrous  goodness,  and  giving  a 
public  feast,  invited  all  these  traitors,  who  duly  appeared.  He  then 
publicly  produced  the  compact ;  confronted  them  with  their  own 
signatures,  and  forgave  them. 

Hugh  was  solemnly  sworn  to  fidelity  along  with  the  others,  but 
being  little  touched  by  his  uncle's  forgiveness,  he  soon  embarked 
in  a  new  plot,  and  the  story  runs,  that  having  written  two  letters, 
one  to  the  chief  in  terms  of  deepest  penitence,  and  the  other  to  a 
co-traitor,  devising  fresh  means  for  his  assassination,  he  folded  both 
letters,  and  addressed  each  to  the  other  correspondent.  His  villiany 
being  thus  a  second  time  detected,  his  uncle  determined  to  secure 
his  own  safety,  and  before  Hugh  was  conscious  of  his  blunder,  he 
was  invited  to  return  to  the  house  of  his  chief,  when  he  was  sei2ed 
and  cast  into  a  dark  and  noisome  dungeon,  where  he  was  left  for 
many  hours  without  tasting  food.  When  ravenous  with  hunger,  an 
abundant  meal  of  salt  meat  was  lowered  to  him.  And  after  awhile, 
when  half  mad  from  raging  thirst,  a  cup  followed.  But  it  was  the 
cup  of  Tantalus — empty,  and  only  mocked  his  agony.  After  this 
no  human  step  drew  near  again,  and  he  was  left  to  perish  miserably 
in  solitude,  darkness,  and  unutterable  anguish. 

There  is  no  lack  of  variety  in  the  drives  about  Kilmuir,  and  the 
good  roads  in  every  direction  show  the  wish  of  the  proprietor  to 
open  up  the  country.    The  most  beautiful,  is  one  along  the  sea- 


MONKSTADT  AND  DUNTULM.  149 

coast,  passing  above  the  rock  needle,  known  as  *^  The  old  man  of 
Scudaboro,"  who  rises  from  the  sea,  and  whether  in  tempest  or  in 
calm,  keeps  ceaseless  watch,  though  the  haman  garrison  have  for 
many  a  long  century  forsaken  their  vitrified  fort,  traces  of  which 
you  may  still  note  on  the  green  hill-top.  Beyond  rises  the  red 
headland  of  Idrigal,  one  of  the  points  of  Uig  Bay. 

A  short  distance  further  comes  Monkstadt,  so  called  from  an  old 
monastery,  of  which  some  ruins  can  still  be  traced,  on  what  was 
once  an  islet  in  the  lake  close  by.  Probably  it  furnished  a  con- 
venient quarry  for  the  modern  farm-house,  to  which  various  Jacobite 
legends  are  attached,  whereof  more  anon.  The  loch  has  been 
partially  drained,  and  now  yields  rich  meadow  hay,  while  the  land 
all  along  the  coast  is  unusually  fertile.  The  grain  crops  are  gener- 
ally good,  and  the  pasture-lands  green  and  smiling,  which  indeed  is 
the  most  striking  characteristic  of  this  very  verdant  part  of  Skye, 
and  doubtless  led  to  its  selection  as  the  site  of  the  monastery. 

Passing  onward  along  the  coast,  with  the  sea  on  one  hand,  and 
on  the  other  a  confused  wall  of  broken-down  cliff  and  great  rocks, 
we  come  to  the  ruins  of  old  Duntulm  Castle,  the  Castle  of  the 
Grassy  Hillock,  one  of  the  finest  holdings  of  the  old  Lords  of  the 
Isles,  and  indeed  their  original  home,  built  on  the  site  of  an  old 
Dun,  or  fortress  of  the  Vikings,  the  Scandinavian  pirate  chiefs  who 
held  sway  on  these  Isles,  ere  the  coming  of  the  conquering  Norse- 
men. There  are  no  less  than  six  old  Danish  Duns  in  this  one 
parish  of  Kilmuir. 

Like  all  this  coast,  Duntulm  is  now  the  property  of  the  Laird  of 
Kilmuir,  %nd  the  modem  house  and  broad  pastures  are  rented  by 
one  of  those  wealthy  farmers,  whose  names  are  as  familiar  at  the 
cattle  shows  of  the  mainland  as  they  are  in  the  Isles.  The  old 
castle  has  been  uninhabited  since  1715,  and  is  now  quite  a  ruin, 
and  like  all  the  ancient  dwellings,  it  conveys  a  wonderful  idea  of 
discomfort,  with  tiny  rooms  in  the  thickness  of  the  wall,  and  little 
space  for  luxury  in  such  crowded  quarters. 

Whether  the  ladies  wrought  tapestry  for  their  walls  I  know  not ; 
but  servants,  called  rush-bearers,  were  kept  on  purpose  to  strew  the 
floors  every  morning  with  fresh  rushes.     This  in  due  time  led  to 


150  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

the  invenlion  of  rush  or  grass  matting,  and  so  to  the  use  of  other 
materials  for  carpeting. 

I  suppose  it  was  only  in  extra  luxurious  houses  that  rushes  were 
thus  strewn,  for  even  when  Dr.  Johnson  visited  the  Highlands,  he 
found  only  clay  floors  in  some  of  the  hest  houses.  He  descrihes 
one  to  wliich  he  was  welcomed,  and,  after  an  abundant  supper,  was 
conducted  to  a  bedroom  where  "  an  elegant  bed,  spread  with  fine 
sheets,  stood  on  the  cold  earth,  which  a  long  course  of  rain  had 
softened  to  a  puddle."  Not  noticing  this  at  first,  he  undressed  and 
found  his  feet  in  the  mire  ! 

The  inhabitants  of  Duntulm  Castle,  commanded  a  grand  sea- 
view,  overlooking  the  channel  of  the  Minch,  the  rocky  Shiant  Isles, 
and  those  of  Uist,  Harris,  and  Lewis;  while  its  site  on  perpen- 
dicular basalt  clififs,  rising  from  the  sea,  proved  a  very  grand  natural 
fortification. 

If  we  continue  our  drive  along  the  same  wild  and  beautiful  road, 
it  will  take  us  round  the  foot  of  the  Quiraing,  by  the  green  hills  of 
Flodigarry,  to  the  inn  at  Loch  Staffin ;  thence  two  miles  of  slow 
ascent  and  infinite  beauty  bring  us  to  the  brow  of  the  hill,  whence 
we  first  caught  sight  of  the  wonderful  Rock  Wilderness. 

I  have  sometimes  sat  at  this  spot  throughout  the  beautiful  long 
day  without  seeing  a  living  creature  save  a  group  of  picturesque 
lassies,  in  the  usual  short  petticoat  and  white  bed-gown,  with  bare 
feet  and  bright  scarlet  or  white  handkerchief  on  their  glossy  hair, 
half-hidden  by  the  huge  bundle  of  heather,  which  they  would  have 
to  carry  six  or  eight  miles,  that  the  men  might  rethatch  their 
bothies.  Though  their  usual  habit  is  to  dart  off  the  road,%nd  hide, 
on  the  approach  of  any  gentry,  they  would  rest  a  while  near  me,  to 
watch  the  lady  "  making  maps,"  and  laugh  and  chatter  to  me  in 
Gaelic,  of  which  I  knew  about  three  words. 

One  of  these — i.  e.  meauiehulagan,  the  small  flies,  alias  midges — 
was  a  sure  bond  of  sympathy,  for  these  little  miscreants  are  the  very 
torture  of  life  in  Skye.  You  have  only  to  brush  over  the  heather, 
and  even  if  by  any  accident  they  were  at  rest,  up  they  start  in 
ravenous  armed  myriads,  making  work  utterly  impossible,  till  at 
ast,  with  fevered  blood,  and  face  and  hands  literally  swollen  by 


FLAOUE  OF  'SHALL  FLIES,'  151 

their  attacks,  joa  probably  have  to  leave  the  spot  to  which  you  hod 
attained  with  such  toil  aud  trouble,  and  make  for  home  or  the  sea- 
shore as  fast  as  ever  you  can.  Never  before  have  I  been  filled  with 
ao  righteous  a  personal  detestation  to  Beelzebub,  the  god  of  fliea  ! 
Never  have  I  ao  devoutly  sympathized  with  those  old  Greeks,  who 
considered  the  office  of  Fly-disperser  to  be  work  enough  and  to  spare 
for  one  of  their  gods,  and  told  him  ofi*  accordingly  I  >  We  tried 
every  conceivable  mixture  to  drive  them  away,  and  even  sent  to  a 
London  physician  for  special  antidotes  for  out  tormentors,  but  all 
prescriptions  failed,  and  we  found  that  the  only  thing  approaching 
to  relief   was  always  to  carry  a  small  bottle  of  essential  oil  of 


lavender,  with  which  to  rub  our  face  and  hands.  It  dries  so  rapidly 
that  there  is  no  danger  to  an  artist  of  greasing  his  paper.and  the  scent, 
which  to  human  beings  is  rather  pleasant,  seems  unendurable  to  the 
midges.  After  we  made  this  discovery,  every  sportsman  carried  a 
tiny  phial,  as  the  best  defensive  ammunition. 

We  had  not  far  to  go,  in  search  of  natural  beauty.  I  have  already 
alluded  to  the  two  streams,  which  enter  the  sea  on  either  side  of 
the  site  whereon  stood  the  hospitable  home,  in  which  we  spent  such 
pleasant  summer  days.     One  of  these  is  the  Conan — a  clear,  cool 

1  Zeus  &pomyio8  or  Myiagnn,  who  was  wonhipped  as  the  Diapeiser  of  6ieaL 


152  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

stream,  laughing  and  sparkling  in  the  sun-light,  or  dreaming  in 
quiet  pools  under  the  green  shade  of  ferns  which  grow  in  every 
cleft  of  the  black  mossy  rock ;  it  flows  down  a  narrow  glen,  where 
the  yellow  broom,  shaken  by  the  breeze,  drops  in  golden  blossoms 
into  the  brown  water,  startling  the  speckled  trout  that  lie  on  the 
white  gravel  below,  and  making  them  dart  up-stream,  to  hide  among 
the  pebbles,  over  which  the  water  frets  and  ripples,  ere  it  speeds  on 
its  sea-ward  way. 

For  me,  this  quiet  little  glen  had  a  never-failing  charm,  for  each 
time  I  explored  it,  some  new  interest  revealed  itself.  Sometimes  I 
took  up  a  post  of  observation  near  an  overhanging  ledge  of  rock, 
from  beneath  whose  shelter  there  presently  swam  out  a  motherly  old 
wild  duck  with  all  her  brood — darling  little  balls  of  brown  and 
yellow  fluff,  with  eyes  like  black  diamonds — ^rejoicing  in  their  young 
lives.  At  another  time,  a  water-ouzel  would  dive  from  among  the 
sedges  right  into  the  stream,  in  pursuit  of  some  delectable  beetle ; 
or  the  ring-ouzel  would  fly  down  from  his  home  among  the  heathery 
cliffs,  to  a  flat  granite  rock,  to  drink  and  lift  up  his  head  to  the  sun 
as  if  giving  thanks,  and  then  drink  again.  Sometimes  came  the 
lovely  black  and  white  Oyster  Catchers,  with  scarlet  bills  and  legs 
(Sea-Pyats,  i.  e.  Sea-Magpies,  we  call  them,  when  they  make  their 
spring  home  on  the  gravelly  banks  of  the  rushing  Spey),  and  the  air 
rang  with  their  wild  cries. 

As  I  wandered  up  this  bonnie  bumside,  I  came  upon  rich  masses 
of  honeysuckle,  trailing  up  the  rocks,  and  hanging  down  to  the 
water's  edge.  And  hidden  in  this  sweet  tangle  of  whispering  leaves 
and  blossoms,  were  dainty  homes  in  the  woodbine,  where  young 
birds  chirped  the  livelong  day. 

To  all  lovers  of  wild  flowers,  these  islands  must  have  an  especial 
charm,  for  their  infinite  variety  and  beauty.  There  are  rare  flowers 
for  collectors,  but  I  confess  I  care  more  for  those  I  have  known 
from  childhood,  and  the  sweet  braeside  is  all  covered  with  these. 
The  delicate  purple  rock  geranium  and  the  white  Stellaria  (the  Star 
of  Bethlehem)  grow  thickest  among  "  the  moist  and  reedy  grass  "  in 
these  shady  nooks ;  and  Our  Lady's  Mantle  holds  its  large  dew- 
drop  in  each  leafy  cup. 


THE  FAIRY  HILLOCKS.  153 

The  fragrant  Bog-Myrtle  (or  rather,  Sweet  Gale),  lies  in  green 
patches,  scenting  the  air ;  while  over  every  heather  tuft,  the  gossa- 
mer spider  has  spun  its  delicate  web,  and  one  marvels  how  so  frail 
a  tissue  can  support  the  thousand  diamond-like  dew-drops,  which 
glisten'  and  sparkle  all  over  it.  The  Canna  grass  or  Bog  Cotton 
also  waves  its  soft  downy  plumes,  seeming  to  sprinkle  a  shower  of 
snow  above  the  dark  peat-moss,  an  emblem  dear  to  many  an  old 
Scotch  ballad-writer. 

.  The  Grass  of  Parnassus  is  here  in  abundance,  but  you  must  go 
to  drier  banks  to  find  the  loveliest  flower  of  all,  the  pure  white  star 
which  crowns  that  delicate  slender  stem,  from  which  grows  a  second 
star  of  green  leaves,  two  or  three  inches  below  the  blossom.  I  only 
know  it  as  the  "  Trientalis  Europasa,'' — far  too  fine  a  name  for  so 
graceful  and  delicate  a  blossom. 

When  we  reach  the  FaUs  of  the  Conan,  where  the  merry  waters 
dash  noisily  over  the  dark  rock,  we  turn  aside  into  a  quiet  "  dell 
without  a  name,''  where  a  multitude  of  conical  fairy  hillocks  rise  on 
every  side  of  us,  like  innumerable  tumuli  of  some  giant  race  of 
bygone  days.  They  are  all  exactly  alike  in  shape,  only  differing  in 
size ;  all  clothed  with  short  grass,  and  worn  into  countless  concentric 
rings,  which  I  fancy  must  be  sheep-walks,  though  they  look  like 
water-marks,  or  indeed  like  human  handiwork,  like  the  steps  of  the 
Pyramids  on  a  small  scale.  The  only  other  place  where  I  am  aware 
of  the  existence  of  a  similar  formation  is  near  Loch  Torridon,  where, 
in  a  valley  known  in  Gaelic  as  that  of  the  thousand  hills,  the  same 
green  knolls  rise  in  endless  groups  round  a  central  loch. 

The  highest  of  these  Skye  hillocks,  is  crowned  by  a  precipitous 
rock,  called  Castle  Ewan,  so  marvellously  resembling  a  fortified 
castle,  that  it  is  difficult  to  believe  some  ghostly  masons  have  not 
been  at  work.  The  hillocks  are  essentially  grassy,  ''  with  daisies 
powdered  o'er  "  as  old  Chaucer  says,  but  in  the  little  valleys  between 
them,  there  is  the  same  wealth  of  wild  flowers  in  endless  variety. 
Here  are  carpets  of  purple  and  white  Orchis,  and  golden  Globe 
flowers,  veiled  by  the  lace-like  blossoms  of  wild  Parsley ;  while  the 
honeyed  fragrance  of  the  pink  Bog-Heather  attracts  a  humming 
swarm  of  bees.     The  delicate  blue  butterflies  hover  like  floating 


154  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

harebells  over  the  large  pearly-white  Gowan,  with  the  golden  heart 
— "  the  Wishing-Flower  "  the  children  call  it,  when  they  test  their 
little  loves  by  its  fortune-telling  leaves. 

You  will  hardly  find  a  pleasonter  resting-place  than  one  of  these 
grassy  knolls,  where  you  can  lie  in  peace  and  listen  to  nature's  still- 
ness— *'  the  many-mingled  sounds  of  earth,  which  men  call  silence," 
— the  sounds  of  the  moorlands,  the  shiver  and  rustle  of  grasses, 
ferns  and  tall  iris-leaves  bending  before  the  faint  breeze  ;  and  the 
hum  of  insect  life,  with  that  ceaseless  undertone  of  murmuring  sea 
and  rivulet,  alike  invisible.  Presently,  from  their  burrow  under  the 
fairy  hillock,  come  a  family  of  young  rabbits — ^little,  soft,  coaxy 
things — playing  all  manner  of  merry  antics  ;  springing  and  leaping 
like  merry  kittens,  and  nibbling  at  the  rich  grasses.     One  sits  close 

to  us, 

"  Fondling  its  poor  harmless  face," 

while  the  others  scamper  off  to  a  feast  of  Dandelion,  and,  as  they 
touch  the  feathery  tufts  of  silken  down,  the  whole  air  is  filled  with 
fluffy  parachutes,  wafted  about  with  every  breath;  and  thistle- 
down too  is  floating  in  soft  white  clouds. 

Do  you  know  how  the  Thistle^came  to  be  chosen  as  the  emblem 
of  Scotland  1  The  old  tradition  is,  that  when  a  Scottish  garrison 
was  in  danger  of  being  surprised  by  a  Danish  foe,  a  bare-footed 
Dane,  creeping  along  in  the  darkness  of  night,  trod  on  the  sharp 
prickles  of  a  thistle,  and,  yelling  with  the  shock  of  sudden  pain, 
aroused  the  drowsy  sentinel ;  and  the  garrison  thus  saved,  adopted 
the  emblem  and  motto  which  afterwards  became  that  of  the 
nation. 

Turning  homeward  from  this  happy  valley,  a  light  curl  of  blue 
smoke  betrays  a  lonely  shelling,  more  picturesque  than  cosy,  I  fear. 
It  is  built  as  a  lean-to  against  a  great  boulder  of  rock,  the  honey- 
suckle has  clambered  over  the  heather  roof  ;  outside  it  is  a  study 
for  a  painter,  but  within,  it  is  dark  and  dingy,  and  thick  with  the 
rich  brown  peat-reek  of  ages.  It  does  own  a  chimney,  through 
which  we  see  more  of  the  blue  sky  than  through  the  tiny  window  ; 
and  when  our  blinded  eyes  can  distinguish  anything,  a  ray  of  light 
(from  the  chimney)  gleaming  athwart  the  blue  haze  reveals  a  hand- 


THE  TWO  STREAMS.  155 

some  cat  with  her  kittens  playing  near  two  nice  old  wives — 
"  caillachs/'  the  Gaelic  folk  would  say — who  sit  spinning  in  the 
comer.  They  are  very  deaf,  and  "  have  no  English,"  so  our  friend- 
ship hegins  and  ends  with  a  smUe  and  a  grip  from  a  kindly  old 
hand  that  has  done  plenty  of  good  work  in  its  day.  Probably  they 
oifer  us  a  hot  oat-cake,  for  the  poorest  hut  would  fain  show  hospi- 
tality to  a  stranger. 

The  other  stream  which  flows  into  Uig  Bay  is  the  Eah^  whose 
chief  attraction  is  a  very  picturesque  waterfall — no  great  thing  on  a 
dry  day,  but  after  a  good  night's  rain,  when  there  is  something  of 
a  spate,  and  it  comes  roaring,  rushing,  and  tumbling,  as  if  from  the 
blue  sky,  down  between  the  black  cliffs  where  the  Havens  build, 
into  a  deep  basin,  whence  it  boils  over  and  makes  a  second  fall,  and 
then  swirls  and  bubbles  round  the  great  boulders  of  grey  rock, 
whose  golden  lichens  and  brown  mosses  gleam  through  the  spray — 
then,  I  think,  it  is  a  thing  of  beauty,  and  worth  pausing  a  few 
moments  to  see,  from  some  spot  nearer  than  the  high-road,  along 
which  the  tourists  hurry  to  Quiraing ;  that  being  the  thing  to  do ; 
and  to  be  done,  like  all  sight-seeing,  as  quickly  as  possible. 

We  narrowly  escaped  bequeathing  to  the  spot  a  legend  of  our 
own.  For  one  morning,  while  I  was  quietly  painting,  and  my 
brother  scrambling  about  the  rocks  overhead,  suddenly  something 
flashed  past  me,  and  I  looked  up  just  in  time  to  see  him  disappear 
in  the  black  water  below.  As  we  knew  nothing  of  its  depth,  my 
first  terror  was  that  he  would  probably  strike  his  head  upon  a  rock, 
and  it  was  with  a  sense  of  thankful  relief  that,  long  before  I  could 
clamber  down  from  my  own  somewhat  dangerous  perch,  I  saw  a 
white  face  rise,  and  in  a  few  momente  more,  he  managed  to  scramble 
out,  with  no  worse  hurt  than  a  bruised  knee. 

A  few  days  later  we  found  our  way  to  the  Quiraing,  which 
afterwards  became  a  very  favourite  haunt.  It  is  a  stupendous  mass 
of  rock  (araygdaloidal  trap,  which  is  a  black  rock  speckled  with 
white),  the  grassy  hill  ending  abruptly  in  a  precipitous  rock  face, 
whence  green  banks  slope  down  to  the  sea.  Its  general  form,  and 
that  of  its  neighbour,  ^  The  Storr  Eock,"  is  much  the  same  as  Salis- 
bury Crags,  which  must  be  familiar  to  every  one  who  has  passed 


156  IN   THE  HEBRIDES. 

through  Edinbut^h.  The  Stocr  has  one  gigantic  detached  needle 
about  165  feet  in  height,  which  stands  out  clear  againat  the  sky 
like  a  huge  horn,  quite  separata  from  the  cliff,  anJ  visible  for  many 
miles  on  either  side. 


n 


The  Quiraing,  in  addition  to  one  giant  needle,  has  a  chaolic 
wilderness  of  buge  detached  mosstw  of  rock  of  every  conceivable 
form.  These  are  striking  enough,  even  when  seen  in  the  bright 
sunshine;  but  after  a  rainy  night,  when  fleecy  white  miaU  curl  and 


THE  QUIRAINO.  157 

wreathe  themselves,  like  spirit  drapery,  round  each  weird  form,  and 
vapours  steam  up  from  the  grass  at  your  very  feet  till  you  hardly 
know  where  you  stand,  and  every  object  is  magnified  tenfold,  the 
feeling  of  awe  and  mystery  becomes  almost  overpowering. 

Sometimes  a  fantastic  white  shroud  suddenly  hides  the  whole 
scene,  and  you  see  nothing  but  the  grass  and  rushes  under  foot. 
Then  a  rift  in  the  cloud  shows  you  the  blue  sea,  lying  in  the  calm 
sunlight  far  below,  dotted  with  islands,  and  perhaps  the  white  sail 
of  a  yacht.  Suddenly  a  fairy  hand  draws  back  the  curtain,  and 
close  to  you  is  a  rock,  like  a  huge  lion  couchant,  and  behind  it,  a 
tall  pillar,  with  a  kneeling  figure,  which  reminds  one  of  St.  Simon 
Stylites.  Another  moment,  and  these  have  disappeared ;  but  in 
their  place  three  giant  figures,  with  curled  wigs  and  flowing  robes, 
have  slowly  emerged  from  the  mist  They  are  unmistakably  a 
King  and  Queen,  and  the  Lord  Chancellor ;  who,  however,  stands 
uncourteously  dos  d  dos  to  his  sovereign,  but  facing  a  solemn  and 
shadowy  old  Druid  priest,  who  sits  gravely  guarding  his  Eock 
Sanctuary. 

These,  and  a  hundred  more,  are  among  the  quaint  rock  forms 
that  jut  up  from  that  wonderful  confusion  like  figures  in  a  dream, 
suggesting  the  work  of  some  antediluvian  wizard,  whose  spell  had 
suddenly  petrified  all  living  things,  and  thus  bequeathed  to  us  these 
weird  groups  of  fossil  giants.  Geologists,  however,  give  us  a  more 
common-place  reason  for  this  strange  formation.  They  tell  how, 
between  these  masses  of  black  trap  rock,  and  the  columnar  trap 
which  crests  the  sea-clifEs,  there  lie  beds  of  soft  shale  and  crumbly 
limestone  and  oolite ;  and  that  as  these  slowly  wear  away,  the 
Buperincumbent  mass  of  rock  breaks  up,  and  remains  standing  in 
huge  isolated  blocks  and  pinnacles  like  gigantic  castles  and  figures. 
This  process  is  slowly  but  continually  going  on,  and  therefore,  year 
by  year,  these  strange  rock  forms  must  multiply,  as  the  breaking  up 
of  each  winter's  frost  loosens  fresh  masses  of  crag. 

To  see  the  Quiraing  from  the  upper  road,  conveys  a  very  poor 
notion  of  it ;  and  though  the  scramble  to  the  foot  of  the  rocks  lies 
over  slippery  grass  and  sharp-cutting  stones,  it  weU  repays  the 
fatigue.     Behind  the  great  needle,  there  is  a  cleft  in  the  rock  hardly 


158  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

Been  from  below.  You  must  scramble  up  here,  over  the  same  sharp 
fragments  of  disintegrated  rock — a  most  toilsome  process,  and  one 
very  trying  to  shoe-leather — and  at  last  you  reach  the  summit ;  and, 
standing  in  the  cleft  of  the  mighty  cliff  which  towers  above  you  on 
either  side,  you  look  down  into  a  cup  of  greenest  pasture,  closed  in 
on  every  hand  by  the  great  black  crag.  In  the  middle  of  this 
amphitheatre  lies  one  gigantic  mass  of  rock,  a  huge  oblong  about 
forty  feet  high.  The  top  of  this  is  perfectly  flat,  and  carpeted  with 
the  richest  green  grass,  smooth  as  a  lawn,  and  measuring  about  three 
hundred  feet  in  length,  by  half  that  width. 

This  rock  is  the  Quiraiug  par  excellence  ;  and  thouj^h  the  meaning 
of  the  word  is  imcertain,  it  is  understood  to  imply  that  it  was  the 
shee^vfold  of  some  one  once  famous,  who,  driving  his  flocks  thither 
at  the  approach  of  danger,  found  here  rich  pasture  and  a  safe  hiding- 
place  from  foray  and  raid,  at  a  height  of  upwards  of  a  thousand 
feet  above  the  sea,  which  washes  the  base  of  the  gi*een  hill. 

As  you  look  down  from  this  high  post,  through  some  cleft  between 

the  great  rock  spires  and  towers,  your  eye  wanders  first  over  a 

succession  of  grassy  slopes  and  hillocks,  till  it  rests  on  that  broad, 

gleaming  surface — 

'*  With  its  multitudinous  sparkle. 
And  its  countless  laughing  ripple," 

all  dotted  with  islands — some  near,  some  faintly  visible  in  the  far 
horizon ;  while,  looking  towards  the  mainland,  you  discern  the 
great  hills  of  Ross  and  Sutherland.  That  the  islands  are  tolerably 
numerous,  we  are  well  aware,  having  in  our  infancy  been  taught 
that  the  Hebrides  are  490  in  number.  This,  of  course,  includes 
every  rocky  islet  as  far  south  as  Bute  and  Arran,  whereon  pasturage 
for  even  one  sheep  may  be  found.     Of  these,  130  are  inhabited. 

I  spent  many  delightful  days  alone  in  this  rocky  wilderness, 
enjoying  its  beauty  and  its  solitude  beyond  description  ;  and,  above 
all,  its  intensity  of  silence,  rarely  broken,  save  by  the  crowing  of 
some  cheery  old  grouse  calling  its  mate,  or  by  the  quick  whizz  of 
their  wings  as  they  shot  past  me — sounds  which,  to  a  Child  of  the 
Moorland,  are  about  the  pleasantest  that  can  be  heard,  associated, 
as  they  are,  with  many  a  sunny  day  among  the  heathery  hill& 


MOUNTAIN  SOLITUDE.  159 

Moreover,  there  is  a  charm  in  the  feeling  of  out-and-ont  patriotism 
of  the  one  bird  that  is  essentially  British,  and  that  positively  refuses 
to  exist  in  any  corner  of  the  earth  save  his  native  moors,  where  he 
and  his  family  have  from  time  immemorial  lived  their  jolly  and 
independent  lives. 

As  a  general  rule,  tourists  visiting  the  Quiraing  only  come  by 
the  coach,  and  "  do  "  the  rocks  in  a  couple  of  hours,  during  which 
a  fair  amount  of  whisky  is  consumed,  and  the  echoes  are  awakened 
by  discordant  shouts  and  songs.  It  rarely  occurs  to  them  to  stop 
a  night  in  the  Uig  Inn  ;  so,  when  the  steamer  lands  them  at  Portree, 
they  drive  upwards  of  twenty  miles,  returning  the  same  day.  The 
excellent  roads  make  this  easy  enough  ;  and  at  the  time  of  our  visit, 
rival  coaches  had  reduced  one  another's  prices  to  such  a  pitch,  that 
they  were  carrying  passengers  at  one  penny  per  mile  !  Whether, 
like  the  Kilkenny  cats,  they  succeeded  in  devouring  one  another,  or 
whether  either  survived,  I  cannot  tell. 

But  this  I  know — that  he  who  would  learn  the  lesson  of  the 
hills,  must  go  forth  from  the  multitude,  and  learn  it  in  silence  and 
solitude ;  that  nature's  voice  may  whisper  to  him  in  sweet  low 
tones  that  cannot  be  discerned,  amid  the  jarring  sounds  of  human 
mirth.  Kever  more  forcibly  than  in  this  place  does  one  realize  the 
truth  and  beauty  of  such  a  description  as  that  given  by  Words- 
worth of  a  solitary  wanderer,  with  soul  absorbed  in  intenseet 
sympathy  with  nature,  looking  down  on  such  a  scene  as  this,  and 
revelling  in  its  utter  loneliness  : 

"  From  the  naked  top 
Of  some  bold  head-land,  he  beheld  the  sun 
Rise  up  and  bathe  the  world  in  light !    He  looked— 
Ocean  and  earth,  the  solid  frame  of  earth 
And  ocean's  liquid  mass,  in  gladness  lay 
Beneath  him  ;  far  and  wide  the  clouds  were  touched. 
And  in  their  silent  faces  could  he  read 
Unutterable  love.    Sound  needed  none. 
Nor  any  voice  of  joy ;  his  spirit  drank 
The  spectacle,— sensation,  soul,  and  fomi. 
All  melted  into  him ;  they  swallowed  up 
His  animal  being  ;  in  them  did  he  live, 
And  by  them  did  he  live ;  they  were  his  life." 


160  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

Sometimes  while  you  sit  here  entranced,  a  shadow  passes  over, 
and  as  you  look  up,  you  may  see  the  Great  Golden  Eagle  soar  from 
its  eyrie  on  the  highest  crag,  cleaving  the  air  with  strong  steady 
wing  (measuring  perhaps  six  feet  from  tip  to  tip),  and  now  scanning 
Duntulm's  lambs,  which  would  be  tempting  prizes  to  carry  back  to 
the  eaglets,  in  their  nest  of  rushes  and  heather. 

Sometimes  the  Osprey  sails  along,  for  it,  too,  breeds  among  these 
cliffs ;  but  it  makes  for  the  river,  and  would  rather  catch  fish  for 
itself,  like  an  honest  bird,  than  molest  the  flocks.  The  Kite  is  less 
scrupulous,  and  glides  along,  marking  where  the  weak  and  sickly 
lamb  may  become  his  prey.  The  shepherds  call  him  the  gled, 
because  of  his  smooth  gliding  flight. 

One  sight  for  which  I  vainly  watched  both  here  and  in  the 
Himalayas,  is  that  of  the  eagle  teaching  her  eaglets  to  fly,  ready, 
the  moment  the  young  wings  are  weary,  to  fly  below,  and  stay 
them  from  falling — an  image  employed  with  such  force  and  beauty, 
in  that  last  song  of  Moses,  sung  in  the  waste  howling  wilderness, 
on  the  eve  of  his  last  ascent  to  the  Arabian  mountains,  where  he 
was  to  die  alone  on  Mount  Nebo,  and  where  the  eagle,  looking  down 
from  his  lonely  eyrie,  would  strengthen  his  own  spirit  with  the 
lesson  of  faith  and  trust  he  had  just  been  teaching  to  his  people. 

One  day  while  I  was  sitting  as  usual  on  the  lonely  hill-side,  I 
was  amazed  to  see  first  one  group — then  another — and  another,  of 
tidy  folk  in  their  Sunday  best,  coming  in  an  almost  continuous 
stream  along  the  bleak  road  from  Portree.  Then  I  found  that  there 
was  to  bo  a  sacramental  preaching  on  the  hill-side  many  miles 
away.  It  was  to  last  a  week,  and  this  great  multitude  was  gather- 
ing from  every  farm  and  village  in  the  district.  Many  of  the 
people  had  walked  thirty  miles,  and  would  stay  two  or  three  days  ; 
though  where  a  hundredth  part  of  them  could  hope  to  find  cover  I 
cannot  imagine.  Doubtless  vast  numbers  must  have  slept  in  the 
open  air,  and  happily  the  weather  was  hot  and  dry.  Still,  in  these 
regions  it  is  apt  to  change  at  any  moment,  and  the  most  cloudless 
sunshine  may  be  succeeded  by  a  prolonged  spell  of  pitiless  rain,  in 
which  case,  what  would  become  of  all  these  people  ! 

The  multitude  of  carts  and  curious  vehicles  of  all  sorts  which 


A  SACRAMENTAL  GATHERING.  161 

passed  this  day  and  the  next  was  leally  amazing,  and  such  primitive 
carts  and  harness  1  A  bit  of  rope  or  twisted  bent  from  the  nearest 
hillock,  with  a  stick  to  act  as  crupper !  Sometimes  a  very  good 
dog-cart  would  pass,  full  of  well-dressed  people,  the  old  mare 
trotting  cheerily  along,  followed  by  her  foal,  and  every  now  and 
then  stopping  to  give  it  a  drink  I 

I  was  once  present  at  one  of  these  great  sacramental  gatherings, 
when  about  three  thousand  people  had  assembled  on  the  wild  coast 
of  Ross-shire  (those  rugged  mountain  ranges  which  we  behold  as  we 
look  down  from  the  Quiraing,  and  across  the  blue  straits).  A  more 
picturesque  scene  I  have  rarely  beheld.  It  recalled  visions  of  the 
old  Covenanters.  As  we  gazed  over  the  bleak  expanse  of  hills,  we 
marvelled  whence  that  great  concourse  of  human  beings  could  have 
assembled,  till  we  heard  that  not  only  every  shepherd's  hut  in  the 
district,  but  almost  every  island  and  village  within  forty  miles,  had 
sent  its  pilgrims  to  the  preaching ;  some  by  boat,  some  on  foot.  Not 
the  able-bodied  only,  but  some  poor  half-paralyzed  creatures,  who 
took  days  of  hard  walking  and  crawling  (sometimes  literally  crawling 
on  all-fours),  dragging  their  weary  steps  down  those  steep  paths,  that 
they  might  sit  at  the  feet  of  some  favourite,  trusted  teacher,  and, 
with  child-like  intensity  of  interest,  drink  in  the  old,  old  story  from 
his  lips.    The  preachings  were,  as  usual,  to  extend  over  several  days. 

But  it  was  on  the  Great  Day  of  the  Feast,  that  we  found  our  way 
there,  when  on  the  green  sward  was  set  the  long  table  covered  with 
fair  white  linen,  round  which  were  gathered  a  great  company  of 
devout  worshippers,  passing  the  Sacred  Cup  and  Bread  from  hand 
to  hand.  From  time  to  time  a  Gaelic  psalm  was  raised,  the  pre- 
centor singing  every  alternate  line  alone,  and  the  mass  of  voices 
taking  up  the  wild  tune,  low  at  first,  then  swelling  into  full  chorus, 
and  again  dying  away,  like  the  booming  of  waves  in  some  ocean 
cave.  The  people  were  all  seated  on  the  grass,  or  clustering  in 
groups  up  the  side  of  the  hill,  which  formed  a  natural  amphitheatre 
of  grey  rocks  or  fading  russet  brackens,  whose  ^'  calm  decay  *'  was  in 
keeping  with  the  great  peace  of  all  around. 

The  majority  of  the  old  wives  wore  the  cleanest  of  white  mutches ; 
some  with  large  white  handkerchiefs  tied  over  them  and  great  blue 

M 


162  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

cotton  umbrellas,  for  though  it  was  an  October  afternoon,  the  heat 
of  the  sun  was  sickening.  Nevertheless  the  men  all  sat  bareheaded, 
looking  up  to  the  preacher  with  earnest  weather-beaten  faces,  the 
warm  colours  of  their  hair  and  beards  recalling  the  russet  of  the 
withering  brackens  around  them.  Whatever  their  occupation, 
nearly  all  were  dressed  in  the  uniform  dark  blue  cloth  peculiar  to 
our  seafaring  folk. 

On  the  rocky  hill  above,  groups  of  little  rough  Highland  cattle 
were  'feeding,  wondering  doubtless  at  such  aa  invasion  of  their 
solitude.  Close  by  flowed  a  tiny  streamlet  of  purest  crystal, 
yielding  precious  store  to  all  the  thirsty  multitude.  At  our  feet  lay 
the  great  calm  ocean,  on  which  the  sun's  ghttering  reflection  was 
changing  from  quicksilver  to  molten  gold.  Beyond,  faintly  seen 
through  the  hot  misty  haze,  lay  the  grand  Skye  hills,  all  mirrored 
as  clearly  as  the  near  cliffs  or  the  countless  islands.  From  the  little 
dachan  of  black  bothies  on  the  shore,  the  blue  smoke  rose  in 
transparent  columns,  and  there  was  quiet  on  every  side.  Only  the 
distant  cry  of  myriad  sea-birds,  or  the  nearer  song  of  the  laverock, 
broke  that  great  stillness,  and  now  and  then  the  crow  of  black-cock 
or  grouse,  or  the  heavy  flap  of  a  heron  floating  past  on  leaden  wing, 
fell  on  the  listening  ear. 

There  was  something  in  the  scene,  that  insensibly  carried  the 
mind  back  to  the  multitudes  who  assembled  on  the  mountains,  or 
by  the  lakes  of  Judea,  in  those  early  days  before  the  name  of 
"  Christian  "  had  been  yet  bestowed  on  the  new  sect. 

One  marked  change,  however,  there  must  be  in  this  modern 
teaching  from  that  of  those  early  days  when  the  disciples,  con- 
tinuing steadfast  in  the  apostles'  doctrine,  met  dailj/  for  the 
breaking  of  bread  and  prayer, — a  custom  which  we  know  was 
adhered  to  by  the  early  Church,  in  Rome,  Milan,  and  Spain,  and 
which  was  retained  by  the  African  Church  at  least  until  the  time 
of  St.  Augustine,  that  is  to  say,  for  the  first  four  hundred  years  after 
the  Feast  was  instituted.  In  all  these  churches  it  was  optional 
whether  the  Holy  Compiunion  should  be  celebrated  daily  or  weekly. 
The  majority  of  Christians  seem  to  have  received  tmce  a  week, 
but  in  no  case  was  less  than  one  celebration  in  the  week  thought  of. 


"WHERE  ARE  THE  NINE?"  163 

These  modem  Christians  have  but  one  such  meeting  in  the  year, 
and  out  of  the  three  thousand  assembled  on  the  hill-side,  at  the 
great  annual  celebration  of  which  I  speak,  only  eighty  were  com- 
municants, the  youngest  of  whom  was  a  shepherd  upwards  of  forty 
years  of  age.  Painful  as  it  always  is  to  witness  the  crowds  that 
pour  out  of  our  great  city  churches  whenever  the  "  comfortable 
words  '*  of  invitation  are  about  to  be  spoken  (recalling  the  sad 
reproach  once  uttered  by  their  Lord  when,  of  the  ten  whom  He 
bad  cleansed,  one  only  would  return  to  give  Him  thanks),  it  seems 
more  painful  still,  to  know  that  these  who  have  gathered  from  so 
far  to  hear  His  Word,  are  actually  deterred  from  approaching  His 
table  by  the  impracticable  standard  of  "  fitness ''  exacted  by  their 
teachers — the  awful  warnings  known  as  "Fencing  the  Tables," 
whereby  the  sick  and  sad-hearted  are  turned  away  sorrowing ; 
while  those  only,  whom  a  human  standard  declares  to  be  whole, 
may  approach  the  feast  of  the  Great  Physician.  This  state  of 
things  seems  to  grow  worse  rather  than  better,  if  it  be  true  that  not 
very  many  years  ago  these  great  gatherings  sometimes  numbered  ten 
thousand  souls,  of  whom  two  thousand  were  communicants.  In 
this  respect,  at  least,  the  Northern  Highlands  might  do  well  to  take 
a  lesson  from  the  Lowlands. 

One  reason  alleged  for  this  rare  celebration  of  the  Great  Feast  in 
the  more  remote  districts,  is  the  difficulty  of  obtaining  wheaten 
bread,  which  alone  is  deemed  suitable  for  use  on  this  occasion. 
Dr.  Norman  Macleod  speaks  of  a  parish  familiar  to  him,  where  the 
old  minister  used  to  be  obliged  to  send  a  man  on  horseback  over 
moors  and  across  stormy  arms  of  the  sea,  for  sixty  miles,  to  fetch 
the  wheaten  loaves.  And  in  most  of  the  Isles,  such  bread  is  only 
seen  when  brought  by  the  steamer  from  Glasgow,  and  of  course  the 
steamer  only  touches  at  principal  ports,  with  which  many  isles  have 
rare  communication.^ 

^  In  Pacific  Isles,  wise  teachers  have  deemed  the  bread-fruit  and  cocoa* 
nut  juice,  which  form  the  ordinary  food  of  the  people,  a  fit  substitute  for  the 
unattainable  bread  and  wine  which  formed  the  ordinary  food  of  Judeaa 
peasant!. 


M  a 


164  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

AFLOAT. 

A  Music-Room—Duntulm  Castle— Fladda  of  the  Ocean— Holy  Stones — 
Schloch  Maddie  Cave — Legend  of  McCrimmon — ^Water  Kelpies— Brownies 
— Legends — ^The  Kilt  Rock — Marine  Forests— Flat-fishes — ^A  Basaltic 
Coast — The  Storr  Rock — The  Ross-shire  Coast — Legends  of  St.  Malruba 
—Sacrifices  of  Cattle — The  Need-Fire— Start  for  the  Herring  Fishing — 
Storms— King  Haco's  Fleet. 

To  those  who  make  their  home  in  the  Isles,  the  possession  of  a 
yacht,  or,  at  least,  of  a  good  sailing-boat,  becomes  almost  a  necessity. 
In  the  fii'st  place,  all  beauty  lies  along  the  sea-board  ;  and  the  visit 
to  a  neighbour  even  on  the  same  island,  which  may  entail  a  weari- 
some land  journey  through  dreary  country,  is  often  a  short  and 
beautiful  sail ;  when,  instead  of  noisily  jolting  and  grinding  along 
a  hard  road,  you  may  glide  silently  through  air  and  water — perhaps 
the  only  way  in  which  you  can  ever  revel  at  once  in  stillness  and 
motion.  Besides,  to  be  continually  within  sight  of  countless  islands, 
and  chains  of  blue  hills,  without  the  means  of  exploring  them, 
would  be  tantalizing  indeed. 

So  it  came  to  pass  that  the  little  fairy  **Gannet"  flapped  her 
white  wings  one  sunny  afternoon,  and  bade  us  sail  with  her  over 
the  merry  green  waves  to  the  opposite  coast  of  Grieshernish,  one 
of  the  few  sheltered  nooks  where  the  plantations  have  actually 
struggled  up  to  treehood. 


A  STRANGE  MUSIC-HALL.  165 

Here  we  found  our  chief  amusement  in  a  wonderful  music-room, 
wherein  every  conceivahle  variety  of  musical  instrument  had  its 
appointed  place.  Besides  piano  and  harmonium,  flute  and  guitar, 
there  was  every  variety  of  organ,  from  the  finger-organ  down  to  the 
most  elaborate  grinder,  with  such  an  array  of  puppets  as  would  have 
made  the  fortune  of  an  itinerant  organist.  Then  there  was  every 
species  of  large  mechanical  instrument,  from  a  common  musical-box 
up  to  a  large  self-acting  organ,  which  played  all  the  favourite  operas 
like  a  first-rate  brass  band  Another,  something  similar,  called  a 
Euterpean,  gave  us  more  solemn  music  Others  play  reels  and 
dance-music.  Next  come  harp,  violin,  violoncello,  bagpipes,  trum- 
pet, comet-k-piston,  reed-pipe — every  musical  instrument  you  can 
conceive  down  to  a  Jew's-harp.  For  aught  I  know,  sackbut,  psal- 
tery, and  dulcimer  may  have  been  stowed  away  in  some  recess  of 
that  wonderful  room.  It  was  a  quaint  fancy  of  one  who  had  spent 
his  best  years  on  Indian  plains,  and  who  had  devised  this  method 
of  shutting  out  sight  and  sound  of  the  wild  storms  and  tempests 
that  so  often  raved  round  his  western  home. 

We  returned  to  Uig  in  the  evening,  so  well  pleased  with  the  swift, 
lovely  little  yacht,  that  we  determined  to  start  at  once  for  a  cruise 
round  the  coast — a  cruise  so  delightful,  that  I  am  utterly  at  a  loss 
whether  to  award  the  palm  of  real  enjoyment  to  yachting  in  the 
Hebrides,  or  camping  in  the  Himalayas. 

Each  day  we  mailed  just  so  far  as  might  seem  pleasant,  gliding 
silently  over  the  waters,  rejoicing  in  the  stillness  of  our  noiseless 
progress ;  no  jarring  sound  of  wheels  ;  no  straining  engines,  or 
whirring  steam ;  only  the  plash  of  wavelets  when  we  anchored  for 
the  night,  in  some  quiet  natural  harbour,  under  the  lee  of  some 
bluff  headland,  whence  we  could  row  close  in  shore,  among  all  the 
beautiful  cliffs  and  caves,  landing  on  the  small  islands,  to  the 
astonishment  of  every  species  of  sea-fowl,  and  of  colonies  of  rabbits, 
which  last  proved  a  very  welcome  addition  to  our  larder. 

One  favourite  anchorage  was  just  below  Duntulm  Castle ;  in  a 
clear,  green  bay,  with  a  pleasant  island  on  one  side,  where  multi- 
tudes of  large,  white-winged  gannets  make  their  home,  and  gathered 
wonderingly  round  their  namesake.     They  were  sorely  puzzled  by 


166  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

our  intrasion  into  thiB,  their  saxictnm ;  and  often,  as  we  sat  on  the 
brink  of  the  cliif  where  they  had  built  their  nests,  they  would  swoop 
past  us  again  and  again,  flapping  their  great  wings  within  a  foot  of 
us,  with  wild  angry  criea,  as  if  to  drive  us  away  again. 

Very  pleasant  it  was  in  the  early  morning  to  land  on  this  little 
island ;  and  though  the  smooth  grassy  slope  was  drenched  with 
heavy  dew,  to  clamber  up  to  the  top,  and  find  oneself  overlooking  a 
precipitous  rock>face,  down  into  the  clearest  green  depths  of  emerald- 
tinted  waters,  only  disturbed  by  the  ripple  where  the  top  of  some 
broken  basalt  pillar  rises  above  the  surface. 

The  old  castle  stands  on  a  great  stack  of  clustering  pillars,  jutting 
into  the  quiet  bay.  On  either  side,  and  in  the  background,  lie 
smooth  green  slopes,  crowned  with  another  range  of  reddish  basalt. 
At  this  early  hour  the  quiet  mists  were  still  sleeping  in  the  valley, 
and  above  them  towered  the  Quiraing  in  dark  solid  mass.  Then,  as 
the  first  rosy  flush  ^touched  the  hill- top,  the  dewy  vapours  floated 
upward  to  greet  the  dawn,  and  the  closed  flowers  opened  their  cups, 
and  all  manner  of  happy  winged  insects  awoke  to  dance  in  the 
quivering  sunlight.  Everything  was  quiet  and  still,  and  but  for 
the  querulous  notes  of  the  sea-birds,  there  was  no  sound  save 
that  of 

**....    The  murmurlDg  sui^e. 
That  on  th*  unnumbered  idle  pebbles  chafes ; " 

and  that  melody  never  ceases,  for  there  is  not  a  grain  of  sand  within 
miles  of  Duntulm — only  sharp  shingly  beach ;  so  those  who  want 
to  bathe,  and  love  to  paddle  about  on  the  soft,  yellow  sand,  must  go 
to  Kilmaloig  Bay,  or  to  Loch  Staffin. 

Now,  if  you  turn  and  look  out  to  sea,  there  lies  the  Long  Island 
on  the  one  hand,  and  on  the  other  Loch  Seaforth,  and  the  wild  hills 
of  Torridon,  in  Boss-shire.  And  much  nearer  you  is  the  Island  of 
Fladdahuan — Fladda  of  the  Ocean,  one  of  those  early  Missionaries 
who  here  built  his  cell  and  chapel.  The  island,  as  seen  from  here, 
is  like  some  great  sea  monster.  For  one  large  isle  lies  like  a  great 
solid  head,  while  a  long  line  of  smaller  rocky  knobs  suggests  the 
dorsal  fin  of  some  huge  creature  swimming  across  the  Minch. 

The  ruins  of  Fladda's  chapel  were  long  extant.     On  the  altar  lay 


SACRED  WAVE-WORN  STONES.  167 

a  round,  bluish  stone,  which  was  always  moist  Should  fishennen 
be  detained  here  by  contrary  winds,  they  first  walked  sunwise  round 
tlie  chapel,  then  poured  water  on  this  stone  Hindu-fashion,  and  a 
favourable  breeze  would  certainly  spring  up  ere  long.  The  magic 
stone  likewise  cured  diseases,  and  the  people  swore  solemn  oaths 
by  it. 

There  was  a  similar  stone  in  the  Isle  of  Arran,  of  a  green  colour, 
and  the  size  of  a  goose's  egg.  It  was  known  as  the  stone  of  St. 
Molingus,  and  was  kept  in  custody  of  the  Clan  Chattan ;  and  the 
popular  belief  was,  not  only  that  it  cured  diseases,  but  that,  if  it 
were  thrown  at  an  advancing  foe,  they  would  be  terror-stricken,  and 
retreat.     It  was  also  a  solemn  thing  to  swear  by. 

I  was  strongly  reminded  of  this  Hebridean  custom  when,  wander- 
ing in  the  solemn  shade  of  the  great  forests  of  Ceylon,  in  the  im- 
mediate neighbourhood  of  the  ancient  ruined  city  of  Pollonarua,  we 
were  shown,  in  the  court  of  a  village  temple,  a  flat  slab  of  stone, 
esteemed  so  sacred,  that  the  most  hardened  villain  dares  not  peijure 
himself  when  compelled  to  swear  by  it.  He  must  lay  thereon  a 
fimam — a  coin  less  than  a  farthing  in  value — ^and  then  take  the 
required  oath. 

In  these  our  Western  Isles  there  were  many  varieties  of  stones 
esteemed  sacred — more  especially  such  as  were  perforated ;  also 
various  crystals,  such  as  those  to  which  I  alluded  when  speaking  of 
the  crystal  balls  at  lona. 

Curiously  enough,  the  fisherman's  lucky  stone  of  St.  Fladda  has 
its  exact  counterpart  in  Japan,  where  (near  the  Shrines  of  Is6, 
where  the  sacred  black  stone  is  held  in  such  deep  reverence)  there 
is  a  lonely  place  of  pilgrimage  called  Futami-Sama — a  dull  pro- 
montory of  grey  shingle,  jutting  into  the  sea,  and  pointing  towards 
three  isolated  rocks.  A  low  wall  forms  the  only  enclosure,  and 
within  it  stands  a  wooden  altar,  whereon  lie  four  big  green  stones. 
To  these  the  fishers  and  other  pilgrims  present  their  humble 
offerings — circles  of  twisted  straw,  a  little  rice,  or  some  odd  little 
morsels  of  green  pottery. 

In  the  Torres  Straits,  likewise,  the  Turtle-giving  gods,  and  the 
Bain  gods,  are  simply  round  painted  stones.     To  the  former,  offerings 


168  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

are  invariably  made  by  the  fishers,  while  the  Rain  gods  are  pro- 
pitiated in  times  of  drought  by  a  libation  of  precious  water.^ 

To  return  to  our  post  on  the  rock.  The  sleepers  in  the  yacht  are 
now  all  astir,  and  as  we  look  down  on  the  picturesque  sailors  in 
their  blue  jerseys  and  long  scarlet  knitted  caps,  all  so  busy,  unfurl- 
ing the  white  sails,  we  know  that  there  is  a  chance  of  a  move  before 
long.  So  we  hail  the  wee  boat,  that  has  been  fetching  the  morning 
supply  of  milk,  and  practise  rowing,  till  a  tune  on  the  pipes 
announces  that  breakfast  is  ready. 

Afterwards  we  sail  slowly  along  the  coast,  starting  early  while  the 
sun  is  still  in  the  east,  lighting  up  the  cliffs,  and  keeping  as-  near 
the  shore  as  we  dare,  else  we  should  lose  all  beauty.  And  the 
slower  the  better,  for  every  fresh  turn  shows  us  new,  strange  caves, 
or  masses  of  tall  basaltic  columns,  sometimes  cut  across,  as  if  by 
some  giant  knife,  showing  a  slanting  section  of  all  the  pillars,  but 
more  frequently  overlaid  with  rich  soil  and  green  pasture,  and  above 
it  all  the  ever-changing  masses  of  the  Quiraing  tower  like  grim 
fortifications. 

Seen  from  this  side,  one  can  hardly  believe  that  they  are  not 
great  masses  of  grey  masonry,  so  utterly  different  are  they  from  the 
red  or  yellow  basalt  which  composes  the  greater  part  of  the  sea- 
coast  for  the  next  few  miles.  A  very  wonderful  formation  is  this 
basalt,  with  those  regular  hexagonal  colunms,  that  look  as  though 
carefully  chiselled  according  to  geometrical  laws.  Learned  men  tell 
us  that  it  was  once  a  red-hot  fiuid,  which,  in  cooling,  crystallized  in 

^  Away  to  the  south-east  lie  the  Fijian  Isles,  now  too  thoroughly  Christian 
to  indulge  in  any  such  vain  worship,  but  a  much-revered  god  of  some  twenty 
years  ago  was  the  Wairuay — an  oval  stone,  the  size  of  a  swan's  egg,  which,  with 
several  smaller  stones,  children  of  the  god,  lay  in  the  hollow  of  a  tree  beside 
the  Rewa  river.  A  similar  stone  at  Bau  gave  birth  to  a  little  stone  whenever 
a  Ohiefess  increased  the  population.  This  sympathetic  deity  has  been  removed, 
but  her  children  remain  to  mark  the  place  of  their  birth.  In  the  Mission 
Garden  at  Bau  are  preserved  several  other  stones  of  the  same  class,  formerly 
held  in  great  reverence.  One  resembles  a  swan's  egg,  and  rests  on  a  natural 
pillar  of  stone,  about  two  feet  in  height.  Another  lot  of  smaller  stone  eggs, 
still  lie  wrapped  in  a  native  cloth,  and  smeared  with  the  turmeric  applied  by 
their  last  worshipper. 


ST.  MOLUOC'S  CAVE.  169 

this  manner,  and  they  show  us  experiments  with  chemical  mud, 
which  heing  allowed  to  cool,  gradually  assumes  the  same  forms,  and 
give  us  miniatures  of  StafTa,  and  all  this  coast. 

Very  beautiful  are  these  caves  and  rock  masses,  where,  on  the 
slightest  provocation,  the  green  waves  rush  in  with  such  sudden 
8«vell,  and  dash  right  over  them  in  wild  white  spray.  This  it  is 
which  makes  the  danger  of  lingering  too  long  in  the  pleasant  nooks 
and  caves,  sheltered  from  the  open  sea.  You  may  chance  to  find, 
as  you  row  confidingly  out  of  your  little  haven,  that  a  sudden  breeze 
has  sprung  up,  fretting  the  white  sea-horses,  and  making  them 
chafe  and  toss  so  angrily  that  your  tiny  boat  may  find  it  hard  work 
enough  to  return  to  the  mother-craft. 

Such  risk  as  this,  I  encountered  at  an  exquisite  spot  in  Kilmaluoc 
Bay,  so  called  in  memory  of  St.  Moluoc,  whose  lowly  cell  once 
stood  on  the  green  shores  of  this  quiet  little  harbour.  As  we  rowed 
close  in  shore,  we  discovered  a  place  where  the  rock-face  was  riven, 
and  showed  light  within.  There  was  just  space  for  the  little  boat 
to  float  in,  passing  under  a  low  archway  in  the  rock,  when  suddenly 
we  emerged  into  an  open  space  so  lovely  that  any  scene-painter 
who  could  produce  such  a  transformation-scene  for  next  Christmas 
would  assuredly  make  his  fortune. 

We  had  floated  into  a  circular  basin,  whose  rocky  sides  opened 
into  several  long  deep  caves,  beneath  whose  shadow  the  water  grew 
dark  and  mysterious,  of  the  deepest  emerald  tint,  while  beneath  us 
lay  a  clear,  transparent  aqua-marine,  through  whose  lustrous  depths 
we  could  plainly  see  our  own  shadows  rest  on  the  yellow  sand  far 
below.  Tiny  jelly-fish,  edged  with  lilac  spots  and  long  white  fringe, 
floated  beside  the  delicate  pink  seaweeds  in  the  clear  green  water ; 
and  as  we  looked  upward  to  the  deep  blue  sky,  we  saw  that  the 
rock  was  crowned  with  heather,  and  ferns,  and  tall  grasses,  changing 
from  golden  cream  to  silvery,  as  the  light  wind  rippled  over  them, 
though  no  breath  of  air  stirred  near  us.  And  from  every  cleft  in 
the  rock  grew  tall  spikes  of  crimson  fox-gloves  (the  folk's  glove  of 
olden  days),  and  clusters  of  blue-bells,  and  all  manner  of  flowers, 
blue  and  white  and  yellow. 

There  was  not  a  sound  to  be  heard  save  the  swish,  swish  of  the 


170  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

dancing  wavelets  just  outside.  So  perfectly  did  the  rocks  round 
us  deaden  all  noise,  that  when  the  yacht  fired  her  little  gun  as  a 
signal  for  the  immediate  return  of  the  boat,  I  still  sat  quietly  paint- 
ing, utterly  unconscious  of  any  change,  and  it  was  not  till  we  had 
floated  clear  of  the  arch  by  which  we  had  entered,  and  cauglit  sight 
of  the  open  sea,  that  we  realized  anything  being  amiss.  A  heavy 
ground  swell  had  set  in,  and  the.  yacht,  not  daring  to  lie  where  she 
was,  was  running  before  the  wind,  seeking  a  safer  harbour,  and 
leaving  us  either  to  go  ashore,  or  pull  after  her,  as  might  seem  best 
to  Norman  Campbell,  the  trusty  yachtsman,  who  was  rowing  me. 
He  being  a  strong  muscular  young  fellow,  and  a  thorough  seaman, 
chose  the  latter,  and  a  stiff  two  miles'  pull  he  had,  before  we  came 
up  with  the  yacht,  which  had  found  a  place  where  she  could  venture 
to  lie  to  and  wait  for  us.^ 

I  fear  Martin  the  skipper  expended  some  forcible  Gaelic  on  my 
escort,  but  these  Skye  lads  are  used  to  gales  of  all  sorts,  and  are 
not  easily  ruffled  ;  and  when  we  anchored  for  the  night  in  beautiful 
Loch  Staffin  Bay,  the  most  harmonious  peace  reigned  among  the 
crew,  and  the  hours  were  enlivened  as  usual  by  wild  G.ielic  songs 
and  choruses,  or  by  stories  of  smuggling,  in  which  the  fathers  and 
kinsfolk  of  the  narrators  generally  took  a  prominent  part.  For  to 
have  been  a  professional  smuggler  is  considered  just  as  respectable 
as  any  other  method  of  earning  a  livelihood. 

Then  we  were  told  many  wild  legends  of  the  coast,  and  can  bear 
witness  how  marvellously  these  gain  in  interest  when  the  narrator 
can  point  out  the  very  spot  where  the  weird  spirit  appeared,  or  the 
miserable  victim  perished.  And  if  divera  caves  will  claim  the 
same  history,  well,  you  must  try  and  believe  it  to  be  true  of  each  in 
turn. 

Take  such  a  wild,  wailing  pibroch  as  McCrimmon's  Lament, 
which,  whether  played  on  the  pipes  in  the  early  morning  at  a 
Highland  funeral,  with  an  accompaniment  of  wild  cries  from  the 
sea-birds, — or  else  sung  by  a  chorus  of  plaintive  voices,  while  the 

^  Handsome  Norman  Campbell — our  escort  on  so  many  pleasant  days — was 
drowned  in  the  summer  of  18S0.  He  and  another  man  went  out  in  a  yacht's 
boat.    The  boat  was  found  capsized,  and  both  bodies  were  washed  ashore. 


LEGEND  OF  McCRIMMON.  171 

little  waves  splash  i^inst  the  ship,  and  the  wind  moans  in  fitful 
gusts — is  ahout  the  most  wildly  mournful  of  all  Gaelic  Laments. 

It  becomes  positively  thrilling  when  the  singers  pause,  and  point- 
ing to  a  dark  yawning  cavern,  extending  far  under  the  land,  tell 
you  that  there,  into  that  very  cave,  the  bold  piper  marched, 
followed  by  his  faithful  dog ;  that  he  ventured  bravely  on,  resolved 
to  explore  the  dark  passage,  and  that  about  a  mile  inland,  where  a 
deep  hole  is  supposed  to  open  into  the  subterranean  passage,  his 
watchful  friends  still  heard  his  heart-stirring  music,  when  suddenly 
it  ceased,  and  soon  an  awful  struggle  was  heard,  and  McCrimmon's 
cry  of  anguish  arose,  telling  of  some  awful  creature  that  was 
grappling  with  him  in  the  darkness.  Then  the  cries  ceased.  Soon 
afterwards  the  miserable  dog,  which  had  been  flayed  alive,  and  had 
lost  even  the  power  of  howling,  crept  to  the  mouth  of  the  cave  to 
die.  And  since  that  day  no  rash  adventurer  has  been  so  foolhardy 
as  to  tempt  the  like  fate. 

I  must  confess  to  have  been  painfully  disiUiunonnSe  on  hearing 
the  same  story  told  of  the  cave  at  Keil,  in  the  Mull  of  Cantyre, 
and  of  half  a  dozen  different  spots  on  the  west  coast.  Nevertheless 
you  sometimes  hear  deliciously  **  creepy "  stories,  such  legends  as 
may  well  inspire  the  fishers  with  an  ill-defined,  mysterious  dread  of 
certain  spots. 

Such  is  the  tale  that  tells  how  on  the  shore  of  one  of  those  dim 
isles  (either  Barra  or  Tyree,  I  forget  which)  is  the  cave  where  Ossian 
and  his  heroes  sit  spellbound  in  a  loug  deep  sleep.  One  day  a 
bold  fisher  discovered  this  very  cave,  and  entering,  beheld  this  grand 
band  of  sleepers.  Near  them  hung  the  magic  horn,  at  the  third 
blast  of  which)  blown  by  mortal  lips,  he  knew  they  would  all 
awaken.  He  was  a  brave  man,  who  scorned  all  fear,  so  he  put  his 
lips  to  the  horn  and  blew  such  a  shrill  call  that  the  cormorants  and 
the  sea-mews  came  shrieking  forth  from  the  dark  recesses  of  the 
cavern.  A  strange  indescribable  dread  took  possession  of  him ; 
nevertheless  he  repeated  the  blast  more  loudly  than  before,  and 
every  rock  seemed  to  echo  back  the  sound  with  strange  spirit- 
laughter.  Ere  its  tones  had  died  away,  he  who  seemed  chief  of 
the  heroes,  and  was  in  truth  Ossian  himself,  stirred  in  his  sleep 


172  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

and  half  awoke.  He  bade  the  rash  intruder  cease,  and  turning  on 
his  side,  slept  once  more.  The  terrified  fisher  fled,  and  straightway 
sailed  from  the  magic  isle,  and  from  that  day  to  this  no  man  has 
ever  been  able  to  find  the  cave  where  the  heroes  of  Ossian  sleep. 

Although  the  influence  of  the  clergy  and  of  the  schoolmaster  is 
rapidly  rooting  out  all  traces  of  grey  superstition^  it  still  has  some 
hold  in  the  more  remote  comers  of  the  land ;  and  the  non-existence 
of  kelpies  and  brownies  and  urisks  is  by  no  means  so  clearly 
proven,  that  a  midnight  encounter  with  them  would  be  a  thing  to 
risk  lightly.  The  kelpies,  as  you  know,  are  water-spirits  which 
are  always  malignant,  and  delight  in  causing  the  floods  to  rise 
rapidly  and  overwhelm  the  unwary  traveller,  while  their  mocking 
cry  rings  in  his  drowning  ears. 

That  the  kelpies  are  "  bye-ordinar  "  irreverent  is  evident  from  the 
legend  of  the  old  kirkyard  at  Conan^ — a  green  dreamy  hillock, 
where  autumn  leaves  float  silently  down  from  overshadowing 
boughs,  a  russet  covering  for  the  grey  mossy  stones.  Hound  the 
foot  of  the  hillock  rushes  the  dark-brown  river,  once  the  favourite 
haunt  of  a  kelpie.  One  wild  night  when  the  storm  was  raging 
and  the  river  was  in  spate,  the  song  of  the  kelpie  was  heard 
above  the  voice  of  the  winds  and  waters,  and  those  who  heard  it 
trembled,  for  they  knew  that  the  kelpie  sought  human  blood. 
Then  in  hot  haste  a  messenger  rode  up  whose  errand  would  brook 
no  delay,  and  he  urged  his  horse  to  swim  the  stream,  but  the  steed 
shrank  back  affrighted,  and  strong  hands  drew  back  the  foolhardy 
rider,  and  vowed  he  should  not  thus  court  destruction.  So  they 
locked  him  up  within  the  old  chapel,  and  all  night  long  the  wild 
tempest  battled  and  raved.  When  the  morning  light  dawned  they 
went  to  release  him,  that  he  might  go  on  his  way  in  safety,  but 
they  found  him  dead,  for  the  kelpie  had  entered  the  sanctuary, 
and  had  not  even  dreaded  the  holy  water,  but  seizing  its  victim, 
had  held  his  face  therein  till  he  was  drowned.  So  you  see  it  was 
a  very  irreverent  kelpie  indeed  1 

All  over  Scotland  there  are  legends  of  these  water-goblins. 
Thus  at  Choill-a-chroin,  "the  wood  of  lamentation,"  near  Loch 

^  Not  the  Gonan  in  Skye,  but  its  more  important  namesake  in  Ross-shire. 


WATER  KELPIES.  173 

Yennachar,  a  beautiful  pony  once  came  playfully  up  to  a  morry 
group  of  children,  and  suffered  several  of  the  little  innocents  to 
clamber  on  its  back.  Then  suddenly  wheeling  round,  it  galloped  off 
with  them,  and  plunged  into  the  cold  waves,  and  the  mothers  wept 
and  wailed  greatly  for  the  little  ones  who  might  never  return.  This 
was  the  form  iu  which  it  constantly  appeared  to  the  Shetlanders. 

Sometimes  a  kelpie  would  assume  the  form  of  a  splendid  black 
horse,  which  would  appear  at  the  market  in  charge  of  some  strange 
uncanny-looking  fellow.  So  fine  a  beast  was  sure  to  find  a  pur- 
chaser, and  for  a  while  all  would  go  well,  only  its  strange  love  for 
water  was  noticed,  and  it  would  prance  and  plunge  with  delight 
when  a  bucketful  was  thrown  over  it.  At  last,  on  some  distant 
expedition,  it  was  sure  to  be  overtaken  by  a  wild  storm,  and  when 
the  ford  ha<l  swelled  to  a  raging  torrent,  and  its  master  was  com- 
pelled to  trust  to  the  good  swimming  of  his  steed,  he  discovered 
too  late  that  he  was  bestriding  the  awful  kelpie,  who  would 
plunge  with  him  into  the  depths  of  the  foaming  waters,  never  to 
rise  again. 

We  heard  many  a  strange  story,  too,  of  those  kindly  brownies, 
who  used  to  do  so  many  good  turns  to  lighten  the  drudgery  of 
farm  or  household  work,  and  take  their  payment  in  bowls  of  cream 
and  other  delicacies,  just  as  the  glashans  did  in  the  Isle  of 
Man,  or  the  pwaccas  in  Wales,  or  as  the  gins  still  do  in  the  far- 
away deserts  of  Scinde.  In  every  case  the  description  of  the 
creature  is  the  same ;  he  is  like  a  dwarfish  human  being,  covered 
with  long  hair,  and  breathing  heavily;  having  moreover  large 
eyes  and  great  strength,  which  he  willingly  employs  for  any  mortal 
to  whom  he  takes  a  fancy,  working  for  him  hard  and  faithfully 
year  after  year ;  but  nevertheless  apt  to  be  sullen  and  morose,  and 
on  slight  provocation,  to  depart  for  ever. 

It  is  curious  to  find  this  good  brownie  doing  just  the  same  work 
in  the  far  east  as  in  these  western  isles ;  but  this  is  only  one  of 
many  kindred  superstitions.  The  people  of  Scinde  have  from  time 
immemorial  been  able  to  draw  the  milk  from  their  neighbour's 
cows,  just  as  well  as  any  Highland  wife ;  their  witches  divine  from 
sheep-bones,  and  take  the  form  of  tigers  and  other  beasts,  just  as 


174<  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

easily  as  a  Scottisli  witch  transforms  herself  into  a  hare  or  a  stag. 
They  tell  wild  stories  of  rakshas  or  demons  of  the  mountains,  and 
of  hhoots  or  ghosts  of  the  dead ;  but  those  who  have  tried  to 
collect  these  legends  say  that  there,  as  in  our  own  Highlands,  this 
becomes  year  by  year  more  difficult,  for  the  old  folk  are  dying  off, 
and  the  rising  generation  do  not  care  to  speak  of  these  things,  so 
that  the  old  stories  are  fast  disappearing  from  the  east  as  well  as 
from  the  west. 

In  South  Uist  there  is  the  valley  of  Glenslyte,  haunted  by  spirits 
called  "  Great  Men,"  and  [formerly  whoever  entered  this  valley 
must  perforce  repeat  certain  sentences,  committing  themselves  to 
the  guidance  of  these  beings  :  for  should  this  ceremony  be  omitted, 
they  believed  they  would  inevitably  go  mad,  which  (like  the 
Chinese  custom  of  beating  gongs  during  an  eclipse  to  save  the  sun 
from  extinction)  involved  a  risk  too  great  to  run. 

Till  very  lately  there  existed  all  manner  of  curious  methods  for 
consulting  oracles,  such  as  sewing  up  a  man  in  a  cow's  hide,  and 
leaving  him  for  the  night  on  some  hill-top,  that  he  might  be  made 
a  spirit-medium.  The  commonest  sort  of  divination  was  practised 
by  means  of  the  shoulder-blades  of  beasts  slain  in  sacrifice,  just  as 
at  the  present  day  the  shepherds  of  Niolo  in  Corsica  foretell  coming 
events  by  the  left  shoulder-blade  of  a  goat  or  sheep. 

And  it  is  a  matter  of  firm  belief  now,  that  channs  exist  whereby 
a  man  can  spoil  his  neighbour's  barm  (yeast),  and  a  woman  can 
prevent  cows  from  yielding  their  milk,  and,  by  some  invisible 
agency,  appropriate  it  for  her  own  use.  She  can  also  by  evil  arts 
take  away  the  milk  from  nursing  mothers.  As  to  the  superstitions 
connected  with  death,  they  are  still  numberless.  There  are  warn- 
ings in  the  flight  of  birds,  the  howling  of  dogs,  sights  and  sounds 
mysterious  and  undefined ;  and  which  are  readily  construed  into 
good  or  evil. 

A  hare  or  a  fox  crossing  the  path  is  held  to  be  so  sure  a  token 
of  evil,  that  educated  men  have  been  known  to  turn  back,  declaring 
they  could  not  travel  after  receiving  such  a  sign  of  danger ;  and 
even  in  civilized  Morayshire  and  Perthshire  I  know  one  or  two 
stalwart  men  who  have  no  hesitation  in  believing  that  certain  poor 


CHANGELINGS.  175 

harmless  old  wives  are  witches,  who  have  the  power  to  take  the 
form  of  those  animals.  One  old  wife  lately  told  us  that  there  had 
been  some  talk  lately  about  poaching  hares.  ''  But  deed  she  kent 
it  was  na  auld  Geordie,  nor  young  Geordie  either.  For  ye  see, 
we're  afeared  o'  th'  hares.  Ou,  gin  ye  wad  kill  a  hare  ye  dinna  ken 
wha  ye  wad  be  kiUin'  1     Deed  the  half  of  them's  witches  !  " 

Nor  is  it  very  long  since  one  of  the  gamekeepers  (in  whom  our 
Sassenach  friends  are  wont  to  behold  their  ideal  of  a  stalwart 
Highlander)  wounded  a  hare,  and  triumphantly  told  us  that  the 
next  time  he  saw  a  certain  innocent  old  wife  at  the  kirk  her  arm 
was  in  a  sling,  so  surely  there  remained  no  room  for  doubt  as  to 
lier  dealing  in  witchcraft  I  As  to  the  stories  concerning  second 
sight  (which  answers  to  the  clairvoyance  of  the  south),  they  are 
legion,  and  implicitly  believed  to  this  day.  There  is  scarcely  a 
village  in  which  some  one  has  not  been  favoured  by  ghostly 
apparitions  from  dead  or  living.  Either  the  person  seen  has 
already  died,  or  else  his  doom  is  swiftly  approaching. 

Miiny  are  the  tales  concerning  green-robed  fairies,  and  their  spleen 
against  any  one  presuming  to  wear  their  chosen  colour,  especially  on 
Friday,  when  they  have  double  power,  and  when  a  genuine  High- 
lander will  shrink  from  any  allusion  to  them  as  being  "no  canny," 
or  at  least  to  be  made  with  marked  respect,  as  to  beings  invisibly 
present,  and  who  need  to  be  conciliated. 

Why  these  creatures  should  be  called  Daoine  Shi'ich,  or  men  of 
peace,  I  cannot  imagine,  unless  from  that  curious  feeling  which 
prompts  so  many  races  to  propitiate  evil  demons  who  might  harm 
them,  rather  than  serve  the  good  who  will  do  them  no  ilL  For 
these  men  of  peace  are  spiteful  creatures,  jealous  of  human  joys,  and 
especially  anxious  to  abstract  newborn  babies  (which  they  have  only 
power  to  do  before  baptism),  leaving  in  their  place  their  own  cross- 
grained  brats,  with  voracious  appetites,  always  "  skirling  "  for  meat. 
These  are  known  as  changelings ;  hence  the  use  of  that  name  to 
describe  a  puny,  unsatisfactory  child. 

Throughout  the  Isles  it  is  supposed  that  idiots  are  fairy  children, 
and  when  (as  is  often  the  case)  these  poor  creatures  are  wizened 
and  emaciated,  whUe  in  face  and  character  their  utter  childishness 


176  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

blends  with  occasional  touches  of  shrewd  mother-wit,  their 
parentage  is  considered  to  be  proven  beyond  doubt.  The  sorely- 
tried  foster-mother  has,  however,  one  remedy.  She  follows  the 
ebbing  tide,  and  when  it  is  far  out  she  lays  the  screaming  child  on 
the  shore,  and  there  leaves  it  to  yell  by  itself.  Its  cries  are, 
however,  not  unheeded,  for  the  fairies  are  on  the  watch  to  protect 
it,  and  at  the  last  moment  will  spirit  away  their  noxious  offspring, 
and  restore  the  stolen  human  child.  Just  as  the  waves  approacli  it, 
the  mother  returns,  and,  whether  "  skirling  "  or  smiling,  she  must 
accept  as  her  own  the  creature  she  then  finds. 

I^ven  on  the  mainland  the  faith  in  fairy  lore  is  not  by  any  means 
extinct,  as  was  recently  proved  to  us  when  a  lady  in  Banffshire 
asked  an  old  woman  how  she  came  to  know  of  a  rather  unusual 
cure  for  some  illness.  She  replied  that  she  had  learnt  that,  and 
many  other  things,  from  a  wife  who  had  been  spirited  away  by  the 
fairies,  and  had  lived  with  them  underground  for  eight  years.  But 
having  said  thus  much,  the  old  lady  relapsed  into  a  mysterious 
silence,  and  though  much  questioned  as  to  the  manners  and  customs 
of  the  fairies  and  their  guest,  she  refused  to  say  another  word,  for 
'*  Ou !  it  wasna  safe  to  be  talking  o'  the  gude  folk ;  maybe  they 
wad  be  spiriting  her  awa'  next !  " 

The  belief  in  all  these  weird  and  wondrous  legends  has  been 
greatly  kept  up  by  the  old  custom  of  story-telling  round  the  peat 
fires  in  the  long  winter  evenings  ;  but  the  ban  of  the  Church  now 
lies  so  heavily  on  all  that  tends  to  encourage  superstition,  that  the 
popular  lore  seems  in  danger  of  dying  out,  or  of  being  preserved 
only  by  such  collectors  as  Campbell  of  Islay,  whose  Gaelic  mother 
tongue  and  local  sympathies  enable  him  to  "draw"  every  blue 
bonnet  and  white  mutch  that  cross  his  path. 

It  is  a  matter  of  considerable  difficulty  now-a-days  to  induce  any 
of  the  younger  generation  to  relate  these  old  stories,  partly  from  the 
dread  of  being  laughed  at  by  unbelievers,  who  look  on  their  legends 
as  being  ''just  blethers,''  and  still  more  because  their  solemn 
unimaginative  teachers  try  to  put  down  all  such  foolish  tales  as 
utterly  unworthy  of  wise  and  Christian  men,  though  at  the  same 
time,  the  schoolmasters  labour  hard  to  store  the  minds  of  their 


FOLK-LORE  OF  EAST  AND  WEST.  177 

pupils  with  an  amount  of  Greek  and  Latin  mythology  that  would 
astonish  most  village  schools  in  England.  They  little  think  what 
exceeding  interest  there  may  be  for  learned  men  in  this  old  Gaelic 
mythology  which  is  so  fast  dying  out,  and  of  its  many  strange 
analogies  to  the  most  ancient  legends  of  the  far  east. 

There  is  scarcely  one  of  these  fables  which  has  not  its  twin 
brother  in  those  of  far-distant  lands,  and  in  these  days  when  the 
common  origin  of  the  Aryan  races  is  a  question  so  widely  discussed, 
— when  we  are  told  how  strongly  Gaelic  is  akin  to  Sanskrit,  and 
when  some  maintain  that  Ceylon  and  St  Kilda  were  alike  peopled 
by  a  Celtic  race  which  started  from  a  central  point  in  Asia, — it  is 
strange  indeed  to  find  that  both  these  islands  have  from  time 
immemorial  believed  the  same  curious  traditions, — somewhat  altered 
of  course  in  their  oral  transmission  from  generation  to  generation, 
but  virtually  the  same. 

In  the  Hebrides  you  will  hear  how  John,  the  fisher's  son,  leaped 
his  horse  over  a  strait  to  an  island  in  the  Sound  of  Barra,  where  he 
slew  a  dragon  with  nine  heads  and  rescued  a  beautiful  princess. 

Precisely  such  a  nine-headed  dragon  as  is  minutely  described  in 
these  Gaelic  legends,  is  found  sculptured  on  temples  in  Cambodia 
and  India,  where  the  old  serpent-worship  prevailed  in  the  most 
remote  ages. 

A  parallel  to  the  history  of  how  the  Hindu  god,  Indra,  slew  the 
water  monster,  Vitra  (as  told  in  the  Rig  Veda),  has  been  pointed 
out  in  the  Gaelic  legend  of  how  Fraoch  killed  a  great  serpent  on 
the  Ross  of  Mull. 

The  wildest  tales  of  Ossian  are  found  again  in  the  old  Persian 
poets  ;  and  a  thousand  other  instances  might  be  adduced. 

But  aU  these  curious  coincidences  between  the  customs  and 
traditions  of  the  Eastern  and  Western  world,  have  tempted  us  to 
wander  on  till  we  have  drifted  ofif  into  a  vague  world  of  superstitions 
that  have  carried  us  far  away  from  the  old  Gaelic  songs  and  legends, 
with  which  our  sailors  whiled  away  the  lovely  summer  evening. 

It  was  late  before  the  little  yacht  was  ready  for  the  night,  and 

her  crew  turned  into  their  tiny  cabin  "  for'ard."     The  evening  lights 

were  so  beautiful  that  we  lingered  on  deck,  hoar  after  hour,  scaroely 
....  V 


IN   THE   HEBRIDES. 


knowing  how  to  tnm  away  from  bo  mncli  loveliness.     Thero  hn^l 
been  a  golden  sunset  behind  the  Quiming,  which  still  stood  out  in 


rich  purple  against  a  lemon-coloured  sky — while  the  calm   sea 
reflected  both.     Each  changing  tint  of  the  opal  had  rested  by  turns 


THE  KILT  ROCK.  179 

on  all  the  islands  and  the  hills  of  Torridon.  Now  the  clear  moon- 
light gleamed  on  the  water,  and  silvered  the  soft  white  mists  that 
half  shrouded  Ben  Etra,  even  lending  poetry  to  the  little  inn,  with 
its  group  of  thatched  byres  and  offices. 

But  the  other  side  of  the  bay  lay  in  its  own  deep  shadow,  and  it 
was  not  till  we  saw  it  in  the  early  morning  that  we  realized  how 
beautiful  it  was.  Green  banks  sloped  gently  down  to  the  water's 
edge,  crowned  with  perpendicular  stacks  of  basalt,  in  three  distinct 
masses.  It  is  from  these  basaltic  columns  that  Loch  Staffin,  like 
Staffa,  takes  its  name.  Nearer  us,  a  great  headland  of  rock  and 
greenest  grass  rose  abruptly,  half  enclosing  a  shore  of  the  smoothest 
yellow  sand ;  while  every  mark  and  cleft  in  the  rock  lay  clearly 
mirrored  below.  The  scene  was  irresistibly  suggestive  of  bathing ; 
so,,  being  by  this  time  fully  competent  to  pass  as  **  able-bodied  sea- 
women,"  we  rowed  ourselves  ashore,  and  vowed  that  no  bathing- 
ground  had  ever  been  so  charming;  and  that  here  must  be  our 
head-quarters  for  the  present. 

Later  in  the  day  we  had  a  lovely  row  all  along  the  coast  to  a 
wonderful  headland  known  as  the  Kilt  Rock,  by  realion  of  the 
many-coloured  strata  of  which  it  is  composed.  From  the  green  sea 
upwards,  layers  of  oolitic  limestone,  oolitic  freestone  and  shale, 
alternating  with  lines  of  grass,  lie  horizontally;  while  rising 
vertically  from  these  is  a  great  mass  of  red,  brown,  and  yellow 
columnar  basalt  So  huge  are  these  pillars,  that  they  quite  dwarf 
those  of  Staffa ;  indeed  MaccuUoch,  whose  sea-side  geology  was 
}:cnerally  accurate,  calculates  them  at  five  or  six  times  the  magni- 
tude of  those  in  the  wonderful  little  Isle.     On  the  top  of  this  clitf  ^ 

'  In  case  you  care  for  further  particulars  of  the  "  warp  and  woof,''  which 
combine  to  produce  this  extraordinary  specimen  of  geological  tartan,  I  may 
quote  Professor  Edward  Forbes'  description  of  the  series  of  formations  shown 
in  the  face  of  the  cliff. 

First  of  all  comes  the  crowning  mass  of  huge  columnar  basalt,  red,  brown, 
and  yellow.    Below  this  lies— 

1.  A  thin  band  of  small-rolled  pebbles,  mingled  with  fragments  of  jet. 

2.  Crumbling  blue  shales,  with  fossils,  five  feet  in  thickness. 

3.  A  thin  band  of  concretionary  limestone. 

4.  Five  feet  of  blue  shale,  with  ammonites  and  large  belenmites. 

N  2 


180  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

lies  an  extensive  loch  (Loch  Mialt  is  the  sound,  though  as  to  Gaelic 
spelling,  he  is  rash  who  ventures  to  attempt  it !) — a  loch  with  reedy 
shores,  haunted  by  innumerable  water-fowl.  Hence  the  waters 
fall  into  the  sea  below,  in  flashing  spray — a  clear  fall  of  300  feet. 

As  we  rowed  slowly  along,  in  the  warm  bright  sun  (so  warm 
indeed,  that  the  men's  faces  and  arms — tough  sailors  though  they 
were — were  all  blistered  with  the  heat),  we  looked  up  to  the  cliffs 
above,  and  down  into  the  waters  beneath,  with  indescribable  delight, 
so  wonderful  is  the  contrast  between  those  mighty  rock  walls,  with 
the  perfect  stillness  of  the  exquisite  green  water,  through  the  clear 
depths  of  which  we  peered  down  into  the  marine  forest,  whence 
trees  and  shrubs,  of  every  variety  of  form  and  colour,  stretched  their 
branches  upward  to  the  light.  There  grow  giant  brown  sea- wares  of 
many  forms,  some  waving  like  graceful  palms  ;  others  tossing  great 
arms  aloft,  like  the  patriarchs  of  this  untrodden  jungle.  Some 
have  thick  stems,  and  broad  fleshy  leaves  of  the  richest  golden 
brown,  every  leaf  ten  or  twelve  feet  long.  Some  are  smooth 
and  leathery,  and  others  all  plaited,  and  fringed,  and  folded, 
and  twisted,  and  crimped,  as  if  the  laundry-maids  of  the  sea 
had  no  other  work  to  do  but  just  to  get  them  up.  Then  we 
passed  over  others  with  large  fan-like  leaves ;  some  that  looked  like 
bunches  of  long  pink  or  green  ribbon ;  and  countless  varieties  of 

5.  Two  bands  of  hard  grey  limestone,  weathering  yellow,  three  feet. 

6.  Dark  blue  fossiliferoiis  shales,  seven  feet. 

7.  Red  and  yellowish  limestone,  with  fossils,  one  foot. 

8.  Blue  shales,  one  foot. 

9.  Ferruginous  sands,  with  fragments  of  wood  in  the  state  of  jet,  one  foot. 

10.  Concretionary  limestone,  with  fossils,  one  foot. 

11.  Soft  white  sands,  three  feet. 

12.  Hard  fossiliferous  sandstones,  two  feet. 

13.  Grey  sands,  with  carbonaceous  streaks,  five  feet. 

14.  Hard  shales,  with  bands  of  fossil  wood,  three  feet. 

15.  About  fourteen  bands  of  loose  slaty  and  shaly  beds,  about  twelve  feet 
in  thickness,  resting  on  the  basalt  which  lies  beneath  the  waves. 

Add  to  this  varied  mineral  colouring  occasional  stripes  and  patches  of  vivid 
emerald  and  gold,  wherever  the  kindly  grass  and  moss  has  found  a  niche,  and 
you  perceive  that  this  natural  tartan  is  about  as  diverse  as  any  '*  coat  of  many 
colours  '*  ever  woven  in  human  loom. 


THE  SUBMARINE  OABDEN.  181 

delicate  pink,  and  lilac,  and  olive  sea-flowers  and  sea- weeds,  like 
floating  lace-work,  woven  in  some  fairy  loom — more  brilliant  in  this 
temperate  sea,  than  either  in  tropics  or  colder  regions. 

And  in  all  this  beautiful,  luxuriant  vegetation,  myriads  of  dainty 
sea  creatures  make  their  home.  Every  lace-like  weed  seems  beaded 
with  black  peark,  which  are  the  smallest  mussels  that  ever  were  seen, 
each  firmly  moored  to  its  anchorage  by  a  silken  cable.  You  cannot 
lift  up  the  tiniest  plant,  but  you  will  find  on  it  a  score  of  living 
things,  whose  delicacy  of  structure  arrests  your  eye,  even  without 
the  help  of  that  best  of  companions,  a  small  magnifying-glass. 

As  to  the  wonders  of  the  invisible  life  of  the  sea,  as  shown  by  a 
good  microscope — the  almost  invisible  weeds,  which  give  food  and 
beautiful  homes  to  millions  of  our  fellow-creatures,  and  the  endless 
varieties  which  float  in  every  drop  of  water — that  is  a  field  of 
enjoyment  quite  by  itself.  Only,  be  sure  that  next  time  you  get 
the  chance,  you  look  at  some  common  oyster-spat  through  a  good 
glass,  for  I  think  that  (except  perhaps  the  purple  buHches  of  grapes, 
which  are  only  dust  from  the  blossoms  of  the  marsh  mallow,)  no 
lifeless  thing  can  be  more  beautiful. 

But  the  most  careless  eye  can  scarcely  look  down  into  a  sea 
whose  depths  teem  with  such  exuberance  of  life,  animal  and  veget- 
able, without  noticing  something  of  the  beauty  that  nestles  under 
every  leaf,  lodges  under  each  root,  hides  in  every  crevice  :  thousands 
of  creatures,  each  of  wonderful  organism,  building  their  curious  nests 
of  sand  and  glutinous  matter,  floating  on  the  warm  surface  of  the 
water,  or  drifting  lazily  hither  and  thither  in  the  gentle  current. 

After  passing  the  Kilt  Rock,  we  came  to  what  seemed  to  me 
still  more  curious  geological  freaks.  There  were  patches  of  many- 
coloured  rock  ;  but  in  particular,  just  above  the  sea-level  was  a  long 
layer  of  pale  grey  oolite,  wherein  at  regular  intervals  were  imbedded 
great  round  boulders,  like  huge  black  cannon-balls.  We  landed  at 
Lon  Fern,  a  region  of  black  volcanic-looking  rocks,  some  standing 
apart  like  quaint  figures.  One  statue  of  John  Knox  in  a  black 
gown  was  so  unmistakable,  that  we  pointed  to  it  simultaneously. 

This  bay  is  like  one  vast  aquarium.  I  never  before  saw  so  many 
living  creatures  in  so  small  a  space.     Such  multitudes  of  sea- 


182  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

anemones  of  every  colour,  and  tiny  star-fish,  and  little  silvery  eels, 
and  shoals  of  fish  no  bigger  than  minnows.  And  then  the  countless 
varieties  of  crabs  !  Poor  little  half-naked  hermits,  dwellers  in  other 
folk's  houses  ;  and  braver  J  it  tie  creatures  who  are  ready  to  fight 
life's  battle  for  themselves,  though  they  are  so  delicate  as  to  be 
almost  transparent,  and  their  tender  claws  could  scarcely  nip  the 
tiniest  sea-anemone. 

Sometimes  a  great  big  fellow  (a  parten,  as  we  northerners  call 
him)  would  swim  up  from  his  rock-home  under  the  sea-weeds,  and 
peer  at  us  with  his  curious  eyes,  and  then  sink  down  again,  faster 
than  he  rose,  to  his  hiding-place  in  the  fairy  garden,  among  corallines 
and  sea-weeds  of  every  hue,  crimson  and  gold  and  bronze — and 
lustrous  metallic  greens  and  purples.  Besides  these,  there  were 
innumerable  jelly-fish,  from  the  tiniest  atoms  of  orange  or  red-currant 
jelly,  to  the  great  giants  who  would  overflow  the  largest  jelly  mould 
that  ever  was  made.  And  such  beauties  as  they  are  !  with  their 
delicate  rings  and  stars  of  lilac,  and  the  fringe  of  long  sensitive 
fingers  floating  in  graceful  festoons. 

The  longer  we  looked,  the  more  convinced  we  were,  that,  in  spite 
of  Kingsley,  we  had  really  discovered  for  ourselves  St.  Brandan's 
Fairy  Isle.  There  it  lay  before  us,  just  as  he  describes  it, "  reflected 
double  in  the  still,  broad  silver  sea  " — that  wonderful  water-world, 
where  the  water-babies,  and  all  other  little  water-creatures,  play 
hide  and  seek  in  the  great  water-forests.  There,  just  as  he  tells  us, 
was  the  Isle,  '^  full  of  pillars,  and  its  roots  full  of  caves  ;  and  its 
pillars  of  black  basalt,  with  ribbons  of  many-coloured  sandstone,  all 
curtained  and  draped  with  sea-weeds,  the  rocks  covered  with  ten 
thousand  sea-anemones  of  all  beautiful  colours  and  patterns,  just 
like  the  gayest  flower-bed.  And  here  and  there  the  soft  white  sand 
where  the  water-babies  sleep  every  night,  taking  no  heed  of  the 
little  flounders  which  wriggle  about  in  the  sand,  or  of  the  crabs  which 
lie  buried  under  it,  and  only  peep  out  with  the  tips  of  their  eyes." 

Should  you  let  your  boat  float  in  very  shallow  water,  where  the 
smooth  white  sand  is  clearly  seen  through  the  exquisitely  crystalline 
water,  you  may  chance  to  see  sundry  flat-fishes  of  various  kinds, 
burrowing  in  the  sand,  and  only  betraying  their  presence  by  an 


FLAT-FISHES.  183 

occasional  sliuffliDg  movement,  as  though  they  were  ashamed  of 
showing  their  ugly  twisted  faces.  Strange  to  say,  the  fishers  of  our 
Scottish  east  coast  have  precisely  the  same  legend  as  the  Germans, 
to  account  for  this  peculiarity  in  the  iiounder,  namely,  that  it  was 
doomed  to  have  a  crooked  face  to  all  eternity  as  a  punishment  for 
having  rudely  mocked  some  other  fish,  and  made  faces  at  it  as  it 
passed  !  The  grotesque  ugliness  of  countenance  thus  immortalized 
is  so  fully  appreciated  by  the  people,  that  to  address  a  person  as 
."  a  dun  skate  "  is  a  sorb  of  climax  of  northern  Billingsgate  1  The 
skate,  however,  has  an  independent  ugliness  of  its  own,  and  does 
not  inherit  it  from  any  relationship  to  the  crooked-faced  flounder, 
being,  in  fact,  a  sort  of  flat  dog-fisih,  and  symmetrical  in  its  structure. 

Indeed  these  flat-flshes  are  very  ugly — the  whole  family  of  them ! 
and  the  more  we  learn  concerning  them,  the  more  are  we  puzzled  to 
account  for  the  creation  of  this  crooked  generation.  Why  should  a 
whole  family  of  creatures  have  come  into  existence,  which,  though 
shaped  something  like  a  large  coin,  do  begin  life  symmetrically, 
and  for  the  first  week  of  their  babyhood  swim  vertically,  like  other 
fishes,  with  two  sides  alike,  and  an  eye  on  either  side  of  their 
head ;  and  then,  in  a  weak  manner,  as  if  tired  of  being  poised  on 
edge  like  a  shilling,  tumble  over  on  one  side,  and  so  continue 
to  the  end  of  their  daysl  Gradually  the  under  side  becomes 
bleached  to  a  dead  white,  and  the  upper  side  assumes  the  colour  of 
the  sand  or  mud  on  which  the  fish  most  often  rests — indeed  it  is 
said  that  some  varieties  of  these  flat-fishes  have  the  power  of  changing 
their  colour  at  discretion,  so  as  exactly  to  match  their  surroundings. 

But  the  strangest  thing  of  all  is  how  the  symmetrical  baby-face 
acquires  that  queer  twist,  and  the  ludicrous  ''thrawn'^  eyes.  It 
seems  that  as  soon  as  the  fish  takes  to  swimming  on  one  side,  in 
this  absurd  fashion,  the  eye  on  the  under  side  resents  being  kept 
burrowing  in  the  sand,  so  it  deliberately  starts  on  its  independent 
travels,  and  first  works  its  way  forward,  on  the  under  side,  and  then 
gradually  travels  upwards,  looking  about  it  all  the  time,  till  it  finds 
itself  opposite  the  other  eye,  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  fish.  This, 
at  least,  is  the  course  pursued  by  the  under  eye  in  most  cases.  In 
one  branch  of  this  family,  however,  the  wandering  eye  prefers 


184  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

closing  itself  for  awhile,  and  taking  a  short  cut,  straight  through 
the  head,  reappearing  at  the  opposite  side,  thence  to  take  a  fresh 
survey  of  the  world.  As  its  original  mask  and  socket  remain  for 
awhile  apparently  unchanged,  these  fishes  appear  at  this  stage  to 
be  possessed  of  three  eyes  ! 

We  spent  an  hour  of  delight  in  this  beautiful  natural  aquarium, 
peering  into  every  bright  shallow  pool,  in  search  of  new  wonders. 
Then  we  turned  inland,  to  a  shady,  quiet,  happy  nook  among  the 
silent  grey  rocks,  with  their  beautiful  ferns  and  grasses,  and  wild, 
thyme  and  blue-bells — and  here  we  enjoyed  ourselves  and  our 
luncheon,  as  we  could  only  do  on  such  a  day  and  in  such  a  scene. 

After  awhile,  my  companions  went  off  to  call  at  a  large  farm, 
near  to  which  are  some  remains  of  the  old  Fort  of  Dun  Deirg,  so 
called  in  memory  of  Dargo,  the  Druid, — so  the  people  say.  I  first 
inspected  the  rough  sheiling — half  natural  boulders  of  rock,  half . 
loose  stones — where  the  salmon-fishers  live  ;  then  idly,  for  lack  of 
better  occu{)ation,  wandered  up  a  long  grassy  slope  called  Ehuiia 
Brathrain,  the  Brother's  Hill,  or,  as  some  say,  Rhu-na-Bratan,  the 
salmon's  headland,  from  the  fact  that  the  beautiful  silvery  fish  love 
to  lie  in  the  clear  green  water  below,  which  accordingly  yields  the 
best  fishing  off  the  island. 

Suddenly,  as  I  reached  the  summit,  such  a  scene  burst  on  my 
astonished  sight  as  left  me  fairly  breathless  with  delight.  The 
grassy  slope,  as  I  might  have  guessed,  ended  in  an  abrupt  precipice, 
and  right  at  my  feet,  far  below,  lay  the  clear  calm  sea,  while  from 
the  shore,  one  huge  basalt  needle  stood  up  level  with  the  hill 
whereon  I  stood.  All  along  the  coast  lay  sunny  bays,  each  inclosed 
by  great  masses  of  columnar  basalt,  always  crowned  with  rich  green 
pasture. 

Bight  before  me  towered  the  Storr,  a  mountain  of  the  same 
character  as  the  Quiraing,  rising  almost  perpendicularly  from  the 
sea,  to  a  height  of  two  thousand  feet.  Its  smooth  surface  is  clothed 
with  rich  green  grass,  while  the  rocky  face  which  lies  towards  the 
sea  is  one  mighty  mass  of  broken  crag.  In  every  direction  are 
heaped  confused  piles  of  rock,  tossed  about  in  forms  gigantic  and 
terrible,  like  the  colossal  ruins  of  some  stupendous  city,  or  the 


BURIAL  OF  SUICIDES.  185 

burial-place  of  some  race  of  giants ;  a  place  utterly  desolate  and 
silent)  where  the  spirits  of  the  past  may  dwell  undisturbed,  in 
unbroken  solitude,  and  where  the  floating  vapour-wreatbs  that 
cling  to  the  weird  rock  figures,  seem  like  the  ghostly  winding-sheets 
of  an  army  of  mighty  dead. 

The  autumn  of  1872  added  a  new  element  of  eerieness  to  this 
unearthly  scene,  for  here  was  found  the  body  of  a  poor  young 
Englishman,  who,  wearying  all  too  quickly  of  the  cares  and  sorrows 
of  earth,  selected  this  lonely  spot  as  the  most  fitting  to  put  an  end 
to  the  young  life  that  weighed  on  him  so  heavily.  His  body  was 
carried  to  Portree  for  burial,  for,  in  Scotland,  even  the  rash  dead, 
who  has  fallen  by  his  own  hand,  is  not  excluded  from  a  resting- 
place  in  the  kirkyard,  but  is  laid,  with  unbaptized  infants,  in  the 
cold  shade  on  the  north  side  of  the  church,  to  which  he  is  carried 
head  foremost,  and  is  buried  with  his  head  to  the  east, — whereas 
all  other  dead  are  laid  with  their  feet  towards  the  rising  of  the  sun. 
It  seems,  however,  that  such  burials  are  liable  to  meet  with  opposi- 
tion from  the  fishers,  not  from  any  special  fear  of  the  kirkyard 
being  haunted,  but  from  a  belief  that  for  seven  years  to  come  the 
herrings  will  forsake  the  coast  I  In  the  present  instance,  whatever 
demur  may  have  arisen,  the  funeral  was  suffered  to  proceed,  and 
I  have  not  heard  that  the  harvest  of  the  sea  has  suffered  in 
consequence. 

Still,  the  people  do  consider  this  a  risk,  and  so,  in  various  cases 
where,  for  peace*  sake,  they  have  suffered  suicides  to  be  buried  in  the 
kirkyard,  they  have  returned  secretly  by  night,  dug  up  the  corpse, 
and  buried  it  on  the  shore,  at  low  water  mark.  In  other  instances 
they  have  carried  the  body  to  the  summit  of  some  high  mountain, 
out  of  sight  of  the  sea,  in  the  hope  that  the  herring  might  not  be 
scared.  Such  burials  have  occurred  on  the  summit  of  Aird  Dhubh, 
and  also  on  a  mountain  bounding  Inverness  and  Ross-shire.  The 
latter  was  done  two  years  after  the  original  burial  of  a  suicide  on 
the  shores  of  Loch  Dhuig,  in  consequence  of  which  the  herring  had 
left  the  coastw  They  were,  however,  appeased  by  this  act,  and 
returned  to  the  loch. 

The  herring  also  deserted  Loch  Carron  and  Loch  Alsh  for  some 


186  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

time  after  two  men  had  drowned  themselves  in  these  waters.  In 
each  case,  the  bodies  had  been  washed  ashore ;  after  several  years 
had  elapsed,  the  fishers  agreed  that  strong  measures  were  necessary, 
so  they  kindled  a  great  bonfire  on  the  spot  where  each  body  had 
been  found,  as  a  sacrifice  to  the  insulted  herring. 

High  above  this  wilderness  of  grand  pinnacles  and  tumbled  crags, 
towers  one  gigantic  rock-needle,  poised  as  if  in  mid-air,  on  the 
summit  of  a  great  grass-covered  crag.  This  is  par  excellence  the 
Storr,  a  mighty  monolith  which  bears  an  extraordinary  resemblance 
to  the  double  horn  of  a  rhinoceros.  Its  height  is  165  feet,  its  cir- 
cumference at  the  base  240  feet,  and  as  it  cuts  clear  against  the  sky, 
like  some  vast  minaret  pointing  heavenward  from  its  rock  pedestal 
a  thousand  feet  above  the  sea,  it  becomes  a  landmark  whereby  the 
fishers  may  guide  their  course  ibr  many  a  mile  ;  the  only  wonder  is 
that  it  should  not  ere  this  have  been  in  some  way  utilized  as  a  vast 
natural  lighthouse,  a  guide  for  the  night  as  well  as  the  day. 

Beyond  this  magnificently  wild  scene  lie  the  blue  Cuchullin  and 
Sconser  Hills,  and  the  little  Isle  of  Eaasay,  with  the  wild  coast  of 
Applecross,  Torridon,  and  Gairloch,  as  a  background;  and  as  I 
looked  down  on  the  calm  waters,  a  few  brown  sails  of  far-away 
herring  boats  were  all  that  recalled  human  life  and  toil 

Along  the  horizon  lay  soft,  silvery  grey  clouds,  all  reflected  in 
the  water,  while  from  the  clear  blue  overhead  came  such  a  chorus 
of  laverocks  as  seemed  to  bring  floating  back,  pleasant  memories  of 
sweet  home-voices  singing  joyous  songs,  to  the  blithesome  "  bird  of 
the  wilderness,"  soaring  on  dewy  wing  through  downy  clouds. 
When  the  larks  had  vanished  sunward,  there  followed  a  hush  and 
stillness  of  unutterable  delight — a  *'  silence  more  musical  than  any 
song,"  while  the  hot  sunshine,  pouring  its  flood  of  light  on  earth 
and  sea,  enfolded  all  nature  in  a  dreamy,  sleepy  haze. 

Looking  forward  to  a  delightful  row  homeward,  I  at  last  came 
down  from  my  beautiful  crag,  losing  sight  of  the  sea  for  half-an- 
hour.  To  my  dismay,  I  was  met  by  my  friends,  who  told  me  that 
a  sudden  change  in  the  weather  had  set  in,  and  on  reaching  the 
shore  we  found  that  a  sharp  breeze  had  sprung  up,  and  long  heavy 
waves  were  beating  violently  on  the  rocks.     It  was  clearly  impoa- 


SEA-WEED  AS   FODDEB,  187 

Bible  for  the  boat  to  carry  us  in  such  a  sea.  The  sailors,  however, 
said  that  they  could  get  her  back  to  the  yacht,  if  we  could  go  round 
by  land. 

It  was  a  weary  six  miles'  walk,  and  we  were  pretty  well  tired 
already,  but  as  there  was  no  alternative,  we  just  ''  set  a  stout  heart 
to  a  stey  brae,"  and  clambering  once  more  to  the  top  of  the  cliffs, 
found  there  a  tolerably  level  road,  and  faced  the  dull  grey  mist  as 
cheerily  as  we  could.  We  could  see  nothing  else  on  every  side  of 
us ;  and  every  sheep  we  met  was  so  magnified  by  the  fog  as  to  be 
suggestive  of  some  ghostly  monster.  We  passed  by  the  desolate 
loch,  sacred  to  all  manner  of  wild  fowl,  which  rose  in  wild  alarm  at 
our  approach.  Still,  on  and  on,  we  trudged,  through  the  soaking 
mist,  with  an  ever-changing  escort  of  curlews  and  plovers,  circling 
round  us  with  shrill  angry  whistle,  till  we  were  well  past  the  homes 
of  their  little  ones.  Then  a  fresh  colony  took  up  the  chorus  of 
remonstrance,  while  the  loveliest  little  baby  peewits  started  almost 
from  our  feet,  and  ran  off  to  hide  in  the  tall  sedgy  grasses. 

At  last  we  reached  the  little  Inn  at  Stencholl,  and  here  my  com- 
panions determined  to  spend  the  night ;  but  as  we  were  not  expected, 
and  neither  rooms  nor  supper  were  ready,  I  preferred  going  on 
board  to  my  own  little  cabin,  so  after  getting  good  milk  and  scones, 
and  a  thorough  drying  at  Sandy  M*Leod's  blazing  peat  fire,  a  very 
few  minutes'  rowing  saw  me  safe  on  board  the  Gannet 

Next  morning  broke  calm  and  beautiful  I  went  ashore,  and 
found  my  companions  none  the  worse  for  our  expedition,  though 
not  inclined  to  repeat  it.  So  I  returned  to  our  favourite  bay,  with 
its  yellow  gleaming  sands, 

'*  Where,  'mid  the  hush  of  slumberous  ocean's  roar, 

the  silver  tissued  waves 

Creep  languidly  along  the  basking  shore." 

A  group  of  many-coloured  rough  Highland  cattle  had  wandered  down 
from  the  green  hills,  and  were  cooling  themselves  in  the  sea,  and 
nibbling  sea-weed ;  which  I  believe,  in  winter  time,  when  other 
pasture  is  buried  in  snow,  affords  a  livelihood  to  cattle  ^  and  sheep, 

^  One  of  the  crofterB  at  Barvas,  in  Lewis,  in  his  evidence  before  the  Roycl 


188  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

and  sometimes  even  to  deer.  The  sailors  were  filling  our  barrels  at 
a  spring  of  deliciously  cool  water,  gurgling  up  from  a  cleft  in 
the  rock. 

Beyond  the  blue  sea  lay  the  beautiful  Koss-shire  coast,  every 
peak  of  the  grand  Torridon  Hills  standing  out  in  clear  relief.  One 
in  particular,  a  great  cone  of  pure-white  crystalline  quartz,  glittered 
in  the  sunlight  as  though  covered  with  fresh  snow.  From  Gairloch 
to  beyond  Applccross  that  magnificent  mountain  range  lay  unclouded 
— a  perfect  sea  of  peaks  and  cones  and  great  shoulders — a  grand 
tract  of  treeless  deer-forest,  in  whose  jealously  guarded  precincts  lie 
hidden  deep  rocky  corries,  as  wildly  beautiful  as,  and  practically 
far  more  inaccessible  than,  any  Himalayan  pass.  Verily  the  cup  of 
Tantalus  was  a  perfect  joke  to  the  woes  of  an  artist  dwelling  in  a 
land  of  deer-stalkers,  daily  looking  with  ever-increasing  longing  at 
the  barrier  of  great  brown  hills  which  inclose  the  paradise,  one 
rapid  glance  at  which  still  haunts  his  dreams,  but  where  ho  may 
not  again  dare  to  set  foot,  under  penalty  of  instant  expulsion 

Commissioners,  states  :  *'  He  had  not  to  buy  much  fodder.  They  got  fodder 
out  of  sea- ware.  About  £l  would  cover  all  the  fodder  he  paid  for.  The 
fodder  they  got  from  the  sea  was  sea-ware,  which  the  cattle  and  horses  ate. 
The  sheep  would  not  take  it.  It  was  tangles  they  ate,  and  it  was  very  good 
for  them.  The  animals  were  very  foud  of  it,  and  went  to  the  sea-shore  for  it 
themselves.  They  had  to  be  very  careful  in  the  spring,  for  if  the  cattle  ate 
too  much  of  it  in  the  weak  condition  they  then  were  in,  they  were  apt  to  die. 
At  such  a  time  they  were  careful  not  to  let  them  stray  to  the  sea-shore,  but 
they  brought  the  ware  to  them  and  regulated  the  supply.  Stiaw  was  tlie 
best  fodder  to  give  with  the  sea- ware." 

On  the  other  hand,  another  crofter  states  :  "  There  is  a  great  deal  of  differ- 
ence between  one  of  our  cows  and  an  Aberdeenshire  beast.  The  latter  would 
outweigh  three  of  ours.  All  the  food  with  which  we  have  to  winter  our  stirks 
we  bring  from  Glasgow  ;  and,  on  a  pinch,  we  give  them  the  meal  with  which 
we  should  feed  our  families.  We  feed  the  stu-ks  with  the  meal,  and  pay  for 
the  meal  with  the  stirks. 

a.  ■••*■•• 

Nor  is  the  meal  the  only  item  of  what  should  be  **  the  children's  meat," 
which  has  to  be  given  to  the  beasts.  ^*  Are  the  eggs  ever  given  to  the  calves  ? 
A. — ^Yes,  when  they  are  young,  and  their  mothera  have  no  milk,  on  account 
of  the  poverty  of  their  feeding,  eggs  are  given  to  them.  Our  cows  are  just 
like  Pharaoh's  lean  kine,  owing  to  the  inferior  nature  of  the  pasture." 


"TREES  IN  A  FOREST?"  189 

by  a  whole  army  of  vigilant  foresters,  backed  by  grim  laws  of 
trespass. 

To  the  southern  ear  this  use  of  the  word  forest  always  sounds  a 
strange  misnomer ;  and  the  raw  Saxon  who^ventures  to  wonder  at 
the  absence  of  trees  is  apt  to  be  rather  startled  at  first  by  such  a 
posing  reply  as  "  Trees !  wha  ever  heard  of  trees  in  a  forest  1 " 
Nevertheless,  when,  for  the  satisfaction  of  our  Sassenach  friends,  we 
refer  them  to  their  beloved  Dr.  Johnson,  we  find  he  defines  forest 
as  a  word  descriptive  of  "  any  untilled  tract  of  ground."  You  see 
he  had  been  in  the  north-country  himself,  and  knew  all  about  it. 
If  lack  of  tillage  be  all  that  is  required  to  constitute  a  forest, 
there  is  not  much  fear  of  those  wild  hills  ever  losing  their  rank 
as  such. 

In  those  deep  corries  lie  unnumbered  treasures  for  fern-lovers. 
The  delicate  parsley  fern  grows  there  in  rich  abundance  ;  and  there 
are  sheltered  nooks  by  the  sea  where  the  tall  Osmunda  Eegalis 
flourishes  undisturbed. 

"  Fair  ferns  and  flowers,  and  chiefly  that  tall  fern 
So  stately,  of  the  Queen  Osmunda  named." 

That  wild  coast  still  keeps  legends  of  its  early  Christian  days,  and 
tells  how,  just  twelve  hundred  years  ago,  St.  Maelinibba,  who,  like 
Columba,  was  descended  from  Niel  of  the  Nine  Hostages,  King  of 
Ireland — and  like  him,  too,  was  a  most  zealous  convert  to  the  new 
faith — sailed  over  the  sea  from  Bangor,  and  (a.d.  673)  landing  at 
Aber-crosen  (the  mouth  of  the  Crosen),  now  known  as  Applecross, 
there  founded  a  church  and  monastery,  which  received  the  name  of 
Comaraich,  the  Sanctuary,  and  was  acknowledged  as  a  haven  of 
refuge  for  criminals  and  debtors,  a  privilege  which  I  believe  it  could 
claim  to  this  day. 

On  the  little  isle  of  Croulin,  near  Applecross,  was  Maelruhba's 
oratory — and  other  memorials  of  his  missionary  wanderings  remain 
in  various  parts  of  the  country,  where  he  is  remembered  as  Malruba, 
Malru,  Mourie,  or  Maree.  He  was  i)atron  saint  of  the  south-eastern 
half  of  Skye,  the  remainder  of  the  isle  being  under  the  care  of  St. 
Columba.     To  him  were  dedicated  the  churches  of  Kilmoray  in 


100  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

Brackadale,  Kiltnaree  in  Strath,  and  Aski-Malrabj,  commonly 
called  Rillasbig.  The  parish  of  Kilarrow  in  Islay  was  also  his, 
and  though  its  church  has  wholly  disappeared,  a  few  carved  slabs 
still  mark  the  old  kirkyard. 

In  his  honour  beautiful  Loch  Maree  is  said  to  have  changed  its 
ancient  name  as  an  arm  of  Loch  Ewe.  The  farm  of  Eanloch  Ewe, 
at  the  head  of  the  fresh-water  Loch  Maree,  still  retains  the  original 
name,  though  now  some  miles  distant  from  its  salt-water  god- 
mother ;  a  fact  which,  taken  in  connection  with  the  different  levels 
of  these  lakes,  seems  to  point  to  some  very  curious  topographical 
change. 

One  of  the  many  islands  on  Loch  Maree,  commonly  called  Eilean 
Mowrie,  or  Malruba's  Isle,  became  a  favourite  retreat  of  the  saint ; 
and  his  tiny  chapel,  burial-ground,  and  small  well,  are  still  held  by 
the  people  in  such  veneration,  that  they  resort  thither  to  bathe,  and 
drink,  and  hang  up  rags  and  other  offerings  on  the  bushes.  An 
oak  tree  close  to  the  well  is  studded  with  hundreds  of  nails,  by 
which  scraps  of  clothing  of  patients  were  attached  to  it,  and  a 
number  of  pence  and  halfpence  were  driven  sideways  into  the  bark, 
which  gradually  closed  over  them. 

Tradition  tells  that  in  pagan  days  there  was  a  very  sacred  temple 
on  this  Isle,  and  till  very  recently  this  Holy  Well  retained  the 
property  of  curing  madness,  at  such  times  as  the  waters  were  full 
Should  they  be  low,  it  was  a  sign  that  the  spirit  of  the  well  was 
unpropitious,  and  the  waters  had  no  such  power.  The  well,  which 
is  now  dry,  lies  near  the  shores  of  the  lake. 

It  is  a  pleasant  little  heathery  isle,  and  on  its  highest  ground, 
in  a  thicket  of  oak  and  lioily,  rowan  and  juniper,  dog-roses 
and  honeysuckle,  are  the  ruins  of  a  very  small  chapel  in  a 
circular  enclosure — a  very  low  wall  almost  buried  by  earth  and 
turf.  It  is  supposed  that  this  was  the  original  place  of  Pa$?an 
worship,  and  that  the  saint  tried  to  Christianize  it,  by  there  placing 
his  chapel.  But  his  disciples  probably  only  deemed  him  an 
incarnation  of  their  deity,  for  to  this  day  the  people  of  the  neigh- 
bourhood call  him  the  god  Mourie.  Around  the  chapel  there  are 
many  moss-grown  graves — ^plain  unhewn  stones.     Only  two  bear 


halruba's  isle.  191 

any  Bort  of  carving,  namely,  two  well-defined  crosses  on  flat  slabs, 
which  are  otherwise  untouched  by  the  hand  of  the  stone-cutter. 

These  mark  the  graves  of  a  Norwegian  princess  and  her  lover,  to 
whose  sad  history  the  well  owes  its  healing  power.  The  lady 
had  come  to  Inch  Maree  to  meet  him  at  the  chapel  of  the  saint  who 
was  to  bestow  on  them  the  blessing  of  Holy  Church.  The  bride- 
groom had  promised  that  on  arriving  at  Poolewe  he  would  hoist 
a  white  flag  to  tell  of  his  safety.  But  alas  I  by  way  of  a  hateful 
practical  joke,  he  ran  up  a  black  flag,  and  his  true  love,  never 
doubting  that  he  was  dead,  then  and  there  went  "  clean  demented." 
She  lived  a  few  years  as  a  sorrowing  lunatic,  and  when  she  died, 
and  was  buried  on  the  Isle,  the  waters  i  became  endowed  with 
miraculous  powers.  Her  heart-broken  lover  did  not  long  survive 
her,  and  soon  was  laid  at  her  feet.  The  stones  lie  end  to  end, 
pointing  eastward. 

Violent  lunatics  seem  to  have  had  rather  a  rough  time  of  it.  The 
approved  method  of  conveying  them  was  very  much  like  that  of  lead- 
ing a  mad  bull  to  the  slaughter.  A  strong  rope  was  fastened  round 
his  waist,  and  a  couple  of  powerful  men  taking  each  end,  two  led 
the  way,  and  the  others  followed.  Thus  "  in  stays  "  he  was  led  to 
the  loch,  placed  in  the  boat,  and  rowed  round  the  island,  being  at 
intervals  jerked  into  the  water.  They  were  then  led  to  the  holy 
tree,  into  which  they  drove  a  nail,  or  a  coin,  and  fastened  a  rag. 
Thence  passing  to  the  little  well,  they  drank  of  its  sacred  waters, 
and  made  a  second  ofiering,  after  which  they  were  rowed  thrice 
sunwise  round  the  loch,  in  which  they  were  made  to  bathe  three 
time& 

This  ceremony  was  repeated  daily  for  several  weeks,  by  which 
time  the  feverish  madness  was  often  pretty  well  cured;  and  so 
firmly  did  the  people  believe  in  the  power  of  St.  Maree  (Malruba), 
that  his  name  was  the  most  solemn  oath  by  which  they  swore. 
All  went  well,  till  one  evil  day,  when,  alas !  a  farmer  from  Letter- 
Ewe,  whose  favourite  dog  had  gone  mad,  brought  it  here  to  drink. 
The  dog  was  cured,  but  the  angry  and  very  unsympathetic  spirit  of 
the  well  departed  for  ever.  The  man  whose  presumption  wrought 
this  mischief  himself  went  mad ;  but  he  tested  the  waters  in  vain ; 


192  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

their  virtue  had  gone  from  them,  never  to  return,  nor  have  they 
ever  again  risen  to  their  former  level.  Whether  this  miracle  had 
any  connection  with  certain  deep  drainage  cuttings  made  at  that 
time,  I  leave  sceptics  to  determine.  Happily  the  waters  of  the  lake 
are  still  available,  for  the  pilgrims  who  continue  to  visit  the  lake, 
though  less  frequently  and  more  secretly  than  of  yore. 

Malruba  is  said  to  have  been  slain  near  Conan  Bridge,  on  the 
21st  April,  A.D.  722,  and  his  body  was  carried  to  his  monastery  at 
Aber-crosen,  beside  the  sea^  where  a  grey  stone,  in  a  thicket  of 
brambles,  marks  his  tomb. 

There,  in  the  centre  of  an  old  circle  of  stones,  is  a  noted  perfo- 
rated stone,  "  quherein  the  people  tryed  the  entering  of  their  heady 
It  is  similar  to  one  in  the  Druidic  circle  on  Mauchrie  Moor  in 
Arran.  Perhaps  Mauchrie  and  Mourie  were  originally  identical — 
the  inference  is  rather  in  favour  of  the  worship  here  offered  having 
been  to  "  Mourie,  the  demon,"  than  to  "  Malruba,  the  saint."  (Such 
perforated  stones,  we  know,  were  often  deemed  sacred.  We  noticed 
one  at  Kil-Couslan  in  Cantyre.  Small  ones  were  strung  on  a  red 
thread,  and  worn  as  amulets,  or  were  tied  to  the  key  of  the  stable- 
doors  to  prevent  witches  from  riding  the  horses  at  night.  And  the 
most  notable  of  all  perforated  stones  was  that  through  which  lovers 
plighted  their  troth,  at  the  Standing  Stones  of  Stennis.) 

So  we  must  assume  that  Maelruhba,  like  other  early  Celtic  saints, 
strove  to  engraft  Christianity  on  earlier  superstitions. 

Zealous  as  he  was  in  teaching  the  people,  he  does  not  seem  to 
have  been  altogether  successful,  for  in  the  year  1656  we  find  the 
ecclesiastical  authorities  endeavouring  to  stop  the  annual  sacrifice  of 
bulls  on  the  25th  of  August  to  St.  Mourie,  "  whoever  he  might  be, 
saint  or  demon."  This  recipient  of  dubious  honour  was,  in  fact, 
poor  Malruba  himself.  The  people  also  carried  milk  to  tlie  tops  of 
the  high  mountains,  and  tJiere  poured  it  out  upon  the  rocks  as  an 
oblation.  The  Presbytery  records  that  not  only  were  the  people  of 
AppUcross  accustomed  to  sacrifice  bulls  to  St.  Mourie  as  they  cfdl 
hiniy  but  also  "  Miurie  has  his  monuments  and  remembrances  in 
the  parishes  of  Loch  Carron,  Loch  Alse,  Kintaile,  Contan,  Fottertie, 
and  Loch  Broome." 


MOURIE  WORSHIP.  193 

The  Presbytery  was  much  troubled  at  the  impossibility  of  check- 
ing these  heathenish  offerings,  which  they  found  were  also  made  at 
Gairloch  and  Loch  Mourie,  and  so  Jate  as  1678  the  records  tell  of 
the  custom  of  "  sacrificing  of  beests  in  ane  heathenish  manner  "  on 
the  25th  of  August,  on  the  island  of  St.  Rufus,  commonly  called 
Elian  Moury,  in  Lochew.  Again,  they  tell  of  "the  He  Mourie, 
Quherein  are  monuments  of  Idolatrie,"  where  ^  Mourie  his  devilans  " 
receive  worship. 

Evidently  Mourie*s  worshippers  were  not  ashamed  of  their  evil 
deeds,  for  the  records  add,  **  They  oiones  fhease  titles,  and  receaves 
the  sacrifices  and  offerings  upon  the  acconipt  of  Mourie  hispoore  ones,** 

It  is  noted  in  the  Presbytery  record,  that  Hector  Mackenzie,  as 
also  his  sons  Johne-Murdoch  and  Duncan,  and  Kenneth  his  grand- 
son, had  thus  sacrificed  a  bull,  for  the  recovering  of  the  health  of 
Cirstane  Mackenzie,  spouse  to  the  said  Hector,  who  was  *'  formerlie 
sicke  and  valetudinarie.'*  Consequently  "  The  brithren,  taking  to 
their  consideratioue  the  abhominationes  within  the  parochin  of 
Gairloch,  in  sacrificing  of  beasts  upon  the  25  August,  a>s  also  in 
pouring  of  milk  upon  hills  as  ohlatianes,  desire  the  minister  to  have 
searchers  and  tryers  in  everie  corner  of  the  countrey,  especiallie 
about  the  Loch  Mourie."  These  were  to  summon  all  offenders  to 
appear  before  the  Presbytery,  and  to  warn  "  such  as  heve  boats 
about  the  loch,  not  to  transport  themselves  or  uthers  to  the  He 
of  Mourie,  without  warrand  from  the  minister  for  lawful  ends." 

"  And  for  thease  that  comes  from  forren  countreyis,  that  the 
ministers  of  Garloch  and  Loch  Carron  informe  themselves  of  the 
names  of  thease,  and  the  places  of  their  residence." 

The  dubious  hereditary  honour  of  these  propitiatory  sacrifices 
was  accorded  to  various  Christian  saints  in  various  parts  of  the 
British  Isles.  Eeginald  de  Coldingham  tells  how  in  1164,  a  bull, 
the  marvel  of  the  parish  for  its  strength  and  ferocity,  was  dragged 
to  the  Kirche  of  Cuthbricht  (Kirkcudbright),  and  offered  as  an 
alms  and  oblation  to  St.  Cuthbert. 

Another  writer  tells  how,  in  1589,  he  witnessed  the  accustomed 

sacrifice  of  a  bullock  to  St.  Beyno,  patron  saint  of  Clynnog  in 

Caernarvonshire. 

o 


194  IN   THE  HEBRIDES. 

Strange  hints  of  the  ancient  faith  also  reveal  themselves  dimly 
through  the  traditions  which  relate  to  the  principal  churches  dedi- 
cated to  St.  Michael  (just  as  on  some  old  palimpsest  the  curious 
scholar  discerns  faint  traces  of  the  characters  first  inscribed  thereon, 
and  but  partially  erased  by  the  later  scribe).  In  Southern  Italy, 
as  in  Armorica,  the  churches  of  St.  Michael  were  generally  erected 
beside  some  healing  fountain,  and  some  tradition  of  a  sacred  mystic 
bull,  blends  with  the  legend  of  the  Archangel. 

Akin  to  these  traces  of  the  old  pagan  superstitions  was  the  custom 
of  sacrificing  a  bull  as  an  offering  to  the  earth  spirits,  in  time  of 
any  grievous  cattle- plague.  The  latest  inttance  on  record  of  this 
offering  having  actually  been  made  occurred  at  Dallas,  in  Morayshire, 
on  my  father's  estate^  aomewliere  ctbout  a.d.  1850.  A  murrain 
having  decimated  the  herd  of  a  small  farmer,  he  proceeded  to  kindle 
the  Need-fire  with  all  ceremony ;  then,  having  dug  a  pit,  he  therein 
sacrificed  an  ox  to  some  spirit  unknown  ! 

This  Need-fire,  or  Fire-chum — that  is  to  say,  fire  kindled  by 
frictiX)n  of  dry  wood — was  deemed  a  charm  against  all  manner  of 
disease,  but  especially  against  cattle-plague. 

Though  the  ceremony  of  producing  it  varied  in  detail,  it  has 
been  practised  by  nearly  all  Indo-European  races.  That  which 
was  procured  from  striking  metal  was  considered  worthless. 

Among  the  various  accounts  of  Highland  customs,  ^yhich  in  the 
year  1830  were  spoken  of  as  still  quite  common,  was  the  kindling 
of  this  Need-fire  in  any  case  of  murrain,  or  cattle  disease.  A  small 
booth  was  erected  near  some  river  or  loch,  in  which  divers  wooden 
posts,  upright  and  horizontal,  were  placed :  the  horizontal  timber 
wa^^  provided  with  several  spokes,  by  means  of  which  it  was  rapidly 
turned  round,  till,  by  its  friction  with  the  other  posts,  it  became 
Ignited. 

The  men  who  turned  the  spokes  were  obliged  to  divest  them- 
selves of  any  metal  they  might  have  about  them,  in  conformity 
with  that  curious  feature  in  all  magic,  or  fairy  lore,  which  makes 
the  presence  of  steel  or  iron  utterly  neutralize  all  spiritual  influences. 

In  all  the  Celtic  fairy  tales,  we  find  that  the  touch  of  a  dirk 
deprives  the  **  good  folk  "  of  all.  power,  so  that  to  lay  cold  steel  on 


MOURIE  WORSHIP.  193 

The  Presbytery  was  much  troubled  at  the  impossibility  of  check- 
ing these  heathenish  offerings,  which  they  found  were  also  made  at 
Gairloch  and  Loch  Mourie,  and  so  late  as  1678  the  records  t-ell  of 
the  custom  of  "  sacrificing  of  beests  in  ane  heathenish  manner  "  on 
the  25th  of  August,  on  the  island  of  St.  Bufus,  commonly  called 
Elian  Moury,  in  Lochew.  Again,  they  tell  of  "the  lie  Mourie, 
Quherein  are  monuments  of  Idolatrie,"  where  **  Mourie  his  devilans  " 
receive  worship. 

Evidently  Mourie's  worshippers  were  not  ashamed  of  their  evil 
deeds,  for  the  records  add,  **  They  ownes  thease  titles,  and  receaves 
the  sacrifices  and  offerings  upon  the  accompt  of  Mourie  hispoore  ones,** 

It  is  noted  in  the  Presbytery  record,  that  Hector  Mackenzie,  as 
also  his  sons  Johne-Murdoch  and  Duncan,  and  Kenneth  his  grand- 
son, had  thus  sacrificed  a  bull,  for  the  recovering  of  the  health  of 
Cirstane  Mackenzie,  spouse  to  the  said  Hector,  who  was  "  formerlie 
sicke  and  valetudinarie."  Consequently  "  The  brithren,  taking  to 
their  consideratione  the  abhoroinationes  within  the  parochin  of 
Gairloch,  in  sacrificing  of  beasts  upon  the  25  August,  a^  also  in 
pouring  of  milk  upon  hills  as  oblationes,  desire  the  minister  to  have 
searchers  and  tryers  in  everie  corner  of  the  countrey,  especiallie 
about  the  Loch  Mourie."  These  were  to  summon  all  offenders  to 
appear  before  the  Presbytery,  and  to  warn  "  such  as  heve  boats 
about  the  loch,  not  to  transport  themselves  or  uthers  to  the  He 
of  Mourie,  without  warrand  from  the  minister  for  lawful  ends." 

"  And  for  thease  that  comes  from  forren  countrei/is,  that  the 
ministers  of  Garloch  and  Loch  Carron  informe  themselves  of  the 
names  of  thease,  and  the  places  of  their  residence.*' 

The  dubious  hereditary  honour  of  these  propitiatory  sacrifices 
was  accorded  to  various  Christian  saints  in  various  parts  of  the 
British  Isles.  Eeginald  de  Coldingham  tells  how  in  1164,  a  boll, 
the  marvel  of  the  parish  for  its  strength  and  ferocity,  was  dragged 
to  the  Kirche  of  Cuthbricht  (Kirkcudbright),  and  offered  as  an 
alms  and  oblation  to  St.  Cuthbert. 

Another  writer  tells  how,  in  1589,  he  witnessed  the  accustomed 

sacrifice  of  a  bullock  to  St.  Beyno,  patron  saint  of  Clynnog  in 

Caernarvonshire. 

o 


196  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

the  benefit  of  St.  Nicodeiniis,  to  induce  him  to  protect  all  other 
flocks  and  herds  in  the  district. 

In  olden  days  it  was  currently  believed  that  this  offering  of  a 
life  for  a  life,  was  equally  efficacious  in  the  case  of  human  beings,  as 
in  that  of  animals.  Hence  we  read  strange  stories  of  witchcraft, 
whereby  men  or  women  sought  to  redeem  their  own  lives  by  the 
sacrifice  of  another  human  life,  or  else  when  they  "  laid  their  sick- 
ness''  on  some  animal — cat,  dog,  or  sheep;  and  it  was  firmly 
believed  that  this  modern  scapegoat  would  straightway  vanish  and 
never  again  be  seen. 

Again,  at  the  Stones  of  Camac  in  Brittany  there  is  a  great 
autumn  pilgrimage  (or  pardon)  in  honour  of  St  Carnely.  All  the 
peasants  assemble  to  crave  his  blessing  on  their  cattle.  After 
church  service  they  march  in  procession  to  his  holy  fountain,  and 
then  round  the  village.  In  dead  silence,  they  slowly  march  round 
the  church,  and  kneel  before  the  image  of  St.  Gamely,  wJiicJi  stands 
between  two  oxen.  Then  silently  and  solemnly  they  go  back  to  the 
Holy  Well,  where  they  kneel,  drink,  bathe  their  faces,  and  then 
raise  their  hands  heavenward,  that  the  holy  water  may  trickle  down 
their  aims. 

When  there  is  sickness  in  a  herd,  all  the  cattle  of  a  homestead 
are  assembled  by  night,  and  driven  to  Camac  slowly,  in  strict  silence, 
often  from  long  distances.  They  are  driven  processionaUy  round 
the  church,  then  thrice  sunwise  round  the  Holy  Well,  where  they 
are  sprinkled  with  its  sacred  water.  They  are  then  led  home,  but 
not  a  word  must  be  spoken,  or  the  charm  is  broken. 

Near  the  stones  there  is  a  green  hillock  crowned  with  a  small 
chapel,  and  dedicated  to  St.  Michael.  But  on  the  summit  of  this 
hill  there  is  an  ancient  tumulus,  on  which  every  Midsummer  Eve 
the  people  kindle  a  great  bonfire.  It  is  called  tan-heol  (the  fire  of 
the  sun),  and  is  intended  for  the  good  of  the  cattle,  which  ate  made 
to  pass  through  the  smoke  and  across  the  fires.  In  excavating 
near  the  foot  of  this  hillock,  a  small  old  Koman  bronze  bull  was 
found,  and  the  peasants  at  once  exclaimed,  ''Yoilk  le  Saint 
Carnely  I " 
As  regards  the  kindling  of  the  Need-fire^  Shaw,  the  historian  of 


TRACES  OF  ANCIENT  LORE.  197 

Morayshire,  writing  at  the  end  of  last  century,  mentions  having 
frequently  been  present  at  this  fire-making,  and  adds  that  a  great 
cauldron  was  set  on  this  forced  fire  (feine  eigin),  wherein  juniper 
was  boiled,  and  the  bree  sprinkled  on  the  cattle.  Juniper  was  also 
burnt  in  the  cattle  stalls,  that  its  fumes  might  keep  away  the 
witches.     Possibly  it  may  have  acted  as  a  disinfectant. 

It  was  also  customary  to  bum  juniper  before  the  cattle  on  New 
Year's  Day,  and  to  adorn  the  cow-byres  with  sprigs  of  rowan,  i,  e. 
mountain  ash,  which  must  be  tied  above  the  door,  with  a  red 
thread,  as  it  is  well  known  that 

''  Rowan-tree  and  Red  thread 
Mak'  the  witches  tyne  their  speed." 

Any  person  curious  in  these  matters  may  still  discover  in  our 
midst  many  lingering  traces  of  quaint  old  Paganisms.  I  confess 
that  to  me,  in  these  days  of  humdrum  common-sense,  they  have  a 
charm  like  that  of  some  wild-berry  wine — a  gamey  flavour  in  short, 
recalling  the  days  when  the  mainland,  and  probably  even  these 
islands,  were  covered  with  dense  primeval  forests,  wherein  wild 
deer,  and  wild  men,  and  stately  Druid  priests,  found  home  and 
shelter,  and  where  our  ancestors  worshipped  Baal,  the  sun-god, 
with  strange,  mysterious  rites,  mostly  connected  with  fire  and  with 
the  gathering  of  sacred  plants ;  where,  on  the  great  Festivals  of  the 
Sun,  the  priests  kindled  fire  by  friction,  and  all  the  people  carried  it 
to  their  cottages,  where  it  was  never  suffered  to  go  out,  but,  as  now, 
smouldered  on,  night  and  day,  except  when  purposely  extinguished 
to  make  room  for  the  new  Holy  Fire. 

From  these  dreamy  legends  of  the  distant  hills  I  was  roused  by 
the  sound  of  footsteps,  which  in  that  silent  spot  was  somewhat  of 
a  rarity.  Looking  up,  I  perceived  that  there  was  a  gathering  of 
the  fisher  folk,  for  from  every  side  of  the  hills  I  could  see  groups 
of  people  approach,  all  making  for  this  very  spot,  till  two  or  three 
hundred  had  assembled ;  and  I  found  that  all  the  fisher  lads  were 
to  start  in  the  afternoon  for  the  herring  fishery  on  the  east  coast, 
and  their  sweethearts  and  wives,  and  old  fathers  and  mothers,  and 
little  brothers  and  sisters,  had  all  come  down  to  see  them  off. 


198  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

At  first  it  was  a  scene  of  very  cheery  greetings,  for  many  of 
them  live  far  apart,  and  rarely  "  foregather."  But  as  the  hour  for 
parting  drew  near,  it  became  sadder  and  sadder,  and  the  amount  of 
kissing  and  crying  told  pretty  plainly  how  well  they  knew  tlie 
dangers  and  perils  that  might  arise  within  the  two  or  three  months 
that  the  fishing  would  last  For  many  a  sad  fireside  has  its  own 
sore  history  of  the  Caller  Herrin*,  and  can  tell  too  sad  a  tale  of 
why  "  wives  and  mithers,  'maist  despairin',  ca'  them  lives  o*  men."  ^ 

And  though  the  sea  to-day  was  literally  withbut  a  ripple,  we 
were  reminded  of  its  angrier  moods  by  the  great  masts  and  ribs 
of  an  unhappy  ship  with  which  the  whole  bay  was  strewed,  she 
having  been  dashed  to  pieces  on  these  rocks  some  time  previously. 

For  old  ocean  has  not  forgotten  what  merry  games  it  played  in 
olden  days,  when  the  Norwegian  galleys  that  had  swept  down  so 
proudly  on  the  Scottish  shore  were  dashed  to  pieces  by  the  wild 
storms  on  these  Western  Isles,  and  when 

^  On  Lorn  and  Mull  and  8k ye 
The  hundred  ships  of  Haco 
In  a  thousand  fragments  lie." 

And  his  own  royal  galley,  shorn  and  shattered,  could  hardly  reach 
that  bleak  Orcadian  coast  where  the  brave  Norseman  only  purposed 
to  spend  the  %vinter,  but  where  it  had  been  decreed  that  he  should 
sleep  his  last  sleep,  amid  stern  warriors  and  drowned  fishers. 

Such  of  his  fleet  as  had  weathered  the  storm,  stood  right  away  for 
Norway,  so  the  king  had  but  a  little  band  around  him  when  his 
last  sickness  overtook  him.  When  he  knew  that  he  was  nigh  unto 
death  he  arose,  and  being  taken  to  St.  Magnus'  Kirk,  ?ie  made  a 

1  As  I  revise  these  pages,  tidings  reach  me  of  terrihle  disaster  having 
befallen  the  fishing  fleet  of  llull,  in  the  wild  storm  of  the  2?nd  March,  1883. 
With  the  dark  dawn  of  Good  Friday  came  the  dread  news  that  twenty-three 
boats  would  return  no  more— a  dread  which  deepened  to  conviction  as  the 
slow  hours  wore  on,  and  brought  no  tidings  from  the  sea.  So  in  that  one 
awful  night  135  fishermen  from  this  one  port  perished,  leaving  60  widows  and 
150  fatherless  children.  ' 

And  but  a  little  while  has  elapsed  since  another  awful  gale  swept  the  coast 
of  Berwick,  and  left  one  large  fishinj;  village  literally  without  a  breadwinner. 
All  were  drowned— only  women  and  children  remaining. 


DEATH   OF  KINO  HACO.  199 

sunwtse  turn  round  the  shrine  of  the  sainted  Eirl  Magnus.  A  few 
nights  later  he  died.  His  body,  richly  apparelled,  and  crowned 
with  flowers,  was  laid  in  a  hall  lighted  with  great  tapers,  and 
thence  home  to  St.  Magnus'  Kirk,  and  buried  near  the  shrine  of  the 
great  yarl. 

But  Haco's  dying  command  had  been  that  he  should  be  carried 
back  to  Norway  and  laid  beside  his  fathers.  So  in  the  spring,  his 
body  was  taken  on  board  tliat  great  ship  of  oak,  with  the  twenty 
banks  of  oars,  and  all  the  dragons'  heads  carved  and  gilt;  the 
same  ship  in  which  he  had  sailed  so  gallantly  from  his  own  land. 
After  many  days  the  great  ship  reached  Bergen,  and  all  the  royal 
family  came  forth  to  meet  the  funeral  train,  and  with  them  all 
Haco's  warriors,  and  a  vast  concourse  of  people  who  came  to  wit- 
ness his  burial  in  Christ  Kirk.  So  there  the  brave  sea-king  was 
laid  in  the  year  of  grace  1263.  But  the  men  of  the  Isles,  while 
they  mourned  the  death  of  their  valiant  foe,  rejoiced  in  the  mighty 
bulwark  of  hidden  reefs  and  breakers  that  had  proved  so  sure  a 
defence  against  the  invader. 

This  day,  however,  the  clear  sunshine  and  calm  sea  gave  no  hint 
of  any  danger  being  in  store.  One  by  one  the  heavily-laden  boats 
started ;  some  with  as  many  as  thirty  lads  on  board ;  half  of  whom 
would  help  to  man  the  Ross-shire  boats,  and  then  fish  the  coast 
wherever  the  shoals  might  lead  them.  Fine  strapping  young 
fellows  they  wore,  for  the  most  part, — ^lads  of  whom  the  sobbing 
lasses  on  the  shore  might  well  be  proud.  They  reminded  me  of 
an  islander's  comment  on  a  certain  Scriptural  biography.  ''  Ou ! 
she  was  a  stout  lad,  Sampson  ;  sure  she  cam'  f rae  Skye  ! " 

Away  they  sailed  over  the  smooth  waters ;  and  though  their  rich 
brown  sails  were  hoisted,  it  needed  all  their  rowing  power  as  well, 
to  make  a  fair  start  So  we  wished  them  luck  with  all  our  hearts, 
and  that 

''  Weel  might  the  keel  row,  that  earns  the  balmie's  bread." 

Stomoway  is  one  of  the  chief  stations  in  the  Outer  Hebrides 
where  boats  congregate  for  the  early  herring  fishery.  They  come 
over  from  the  mainland,  or  the  Inner  Isles,  to  where  they  know  the 


200  IN   THE  HEBRIDES. 

fish  will  first  appear,  and  all  along  the  Lews,  Loch  Boisdale,  and 
Barra  there  arj  regular  stations,  where  the  treasures  of  the  deep  are 
landed  to  be  cured  and  packed  for  market. 

Perhaps  as  many  as  1500  boats  may  assemble  at  these  ports, 
each  boat  averaging  a  crew  of  six  men  and  perhaps  a  boy,  making 
10,000  souls ;  the  fish-curers,  gutters,  and  labourers  amounting  to 
fully  20,000  more.  A  vast  multitude  are  these  '*  toilers  of  the  sea," 
and  in  a  good  season  they  are  well  remunerated.  For  instance, 
in  the  spring  of  1870,  the  May  and  June  fisheries  realized 
£120,000. 

After  this,  the  shoals  move  onward  to  the  east  coast — and  the 
boats  must  follow  wherever  they  lead — as  far  probably  as  Aberdeen, 
where,  in  general,  they  are  at  once  hired  by  the  fish-curers,  for  whom 
they  work.  But,  as  a  sample  of  the  changes  and  chances  which 
ftfEect  the  trade,  I  may  mention  that  during  the  French  and  Prussian 
war  tliey  found,  on  reaching  their  destination,  that  the  usual 
immense  export  of  herrings  to  the  Baltic  was  an  impossibility,  so 
the  majority  of  the  boats  could  get  no  engagement  at  all ;  some  of 
those  already  working,  found  no  market  for  their  silvery  ware,  and 
had  to  throw  them  back  into  the  sea.  And  so,  in  the  height  of  the 
fishing  season,  the  boats  returned  home  poorer  than  they  started, 
many  of  those  passing  through  the  Caledonian  Canal  on  tlieir  return 
to  the  Isles  being  unable  even  to  pay  the  lock  dues. 

In  1882  they  had  equally  hard  luck ;  not  for  lack  of  market,  but 
for  lack  of  fish,  for  the  herring  were  capricious,  and  played  a  winning 
game  at  hide  and  seek — ^a  point  noted  in  the  report  of  the  Higliland 
Bail  way,  which,  under  this  head,  notes  a  falling  off  of  freight  to 
the  value  of  £1243  in  the  half-year.  It  also  notes  the  total  failure 
of  the  sprat  fishery,  usually  so  good  at  Inverness  and  along  the  east 
coast,  the  total  tonnage  being  only  49  tons,  compared  with  1841 
tons  the  previous  year,  which  implies  a  loss  to  the  railway  of  freight 
of  upwards  of  £2100  ! 

Among  the  men  who  still  lingered  on  the  shore  were  several  who 
in  old  days  had  accompanied  one  of  my  brothel's  ^  in  dangerous 
bird's-nesting  expeditions,  when  their  strong  arms  had  helped  to 

*  Roualeyn  Gordon  Cumming. 


'THE  SUNDAY  WAR.'  2P1 

» 

lower  him  by  ropes  over  cliffs  and  rocky  ledges  where  the  osprey 
and  golden  eagle  had  made  their  nests.  These  men  one  by  one 
came  up,  in  their  kind  rough  way,  each  with  some  loving  word  to 
tell  of  "  him  that's  awa'  "  (as  they  say) — ^and  for  whose  sake  I  found 
such  genuine  kindness  wherever  I  wandered  on  these  wild  coasts. 
Kind  hearts  they  are  in  truth.  Leal  to  those  whom  they  deem 
worthy  of  honour.  And,  as  we  have  well  proven,  in  times  of 
trouble,  and  in  the  hour  of  death,  they  can  be  gentle  and  tender, 
watching  by  a  sick-bed  with  a  patient  unwearied  love  passing  the 
love  of  woman.  All  honour  be  to  such  true  metal,  in  however 
rough  a  mould  it  may  be  cast. 

THE   SUNDAY  WAR. 

The  beginning  of  June  1883  furnishes  a  very  remarkable  study 
of  sundry  characteristics  of  the  Isles.  Towards  the  close  of  May 
the  Hebridean  shores  were  visited  by  vast  shoals  of  herring.  The 
fishers  from  the  east  coast,  ever  on  the  alert,  captured  such  enormous 
quantities  that  the  market  was  glutted,  and  the  fish-curers  were  posi- 
tively unable  to  take  them  off  their  handn.  On  Saturday,  June  2nd, 
two  steamers  were  loaded  at  Stornoway  (Isle  of  Lewis)  with  fresh  and 
kippered  herring,  and  despatched  to  the  railway  terminus  at  Strome 
Ferry  (Islo  of  Skye),  whence  a  special  Sunday  train  was  to  convey 
these  **  perishable  goods  "  to  Inverness  to  catch  the  south  trains. 

This,  however,  was  not  to  be.  The  men  of  Lewis,  now  effectually 
stirred  up  by  sundry  agitators  to  the  consideration  of  their  "griev- 
ances," could  not  spare  time  to  secure  their  share  of  the  bountiful 
Heaven-sent  supply.  They  were  busy  preparing  for  a  great  **  demon- 
stration" at  Stornoway,  at  which  all  their  wrongs — real  and 
imaginary — were  set  forth  at  full  length,  and  thus  two  precious 
days  were  wasted,  while  the  east-coast  boats  were  reaping  an 
abundant  harvest.  The  next  day  was  Saturday,  which  comes  so 
near  Sunday  that  they  could  not  think  of  launching  their  boats  till 
Monday  (by  which  time  the  herring  would  probably  be  gone). 
So  they  stayed  on  land  bewailing  their  poverty,  and  letting  the 
remedy  slip  away  from  their  grasp. 


202  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

« 

Equally  remarkable  was  the  scene  enacted  at  Strome  Ferry  on 
the  arrival  of  tlie  fish-laden  steamers  at  about  1  a.nL  on  Sunday 
morning.  The  railway  servants,  numbering  about  a  dozen  men, 
at  once  commenced  to  transfer  the  fish  to  the  railway  waggons, 
but  soon  learnt  that  the  fishers  had  resolved  to  put  a  stop  to 
such  *'  Sabbath  desecration."  Whether  this  determination  was  a 
spontaneous  outburst  of  genuine  Puritanism,  or  whether  it  was 
inspired  by  jealousy  of  the  more  energetic  men  who  had  reaped 
their  neglected  harvest,  is  hard  to  say,  but  it  is  certain  that 
they  acted  in  obedience  to  some  general  summons,  for  tlie  Com- 
pany's servants  had  scarcely  begun  their  work,  when  a  body  of 
about  fifty  fishers  from  the  immediate  neighbourhood  assembled, 
and  announced  their  resolution  to  prevent  this  unlawful  Sabbath 
work. 

As  their  words  were  ignored,  they  seized  the  man  in  charge  of 
the  steam  crane,  dragging  him  violently  away,  and  eflectually 
stopping  its  work.  Later,  the  railway  porters  endeavoured  to  dis- 
charge the  cargo  by  hand,  whereupon  the  fishers  pushed  the  waggons 
away,  and,  their  numbers  being  now  augmented  to  about  150  men, 
mostly  armed  with  stout  sticks,  they  fairly  drove  the  railway  men 
off  the  pier, — not  without  a  very  serious  scrimmage.  All  the  morn- 
ing fresh  boat-loads  of  these  rigid  Sabbatarians  continued  to  arrive 
from  all  parts  of  the  coast,  evidently  deeming  their  own  action  a 
display  of  most  righteous  zeal.  Entreaties,  remonstrances,  argu- 
ments were  all  in  vain.  A  small  body  of  police  arrived  from 
Dingwall  in  the  forenoon,  but  found  themselves  quite  unable  to 
cope  with  the  Puritanic  mob,  who  could  see  no  Sabbath-breaking 
in  their  own  act  of  rowing  across  Loch  Carron  to  molest  peaceful 
railway  servants  in  the  discharge  of  their  duty !  It  is  said  that 
two  hundred  men  crossed  the  hill  from  Lochalsh  district,  and  spent 
the  night  signalling  by  fires  to  the  men  in  boats  on  the  loch.  So 
the  fishers  held  tlieir  ground  and  guarded  the  pier  till  midnight, 
when,  the  Sabbath  being  ended,  they  allowed  work  to  proceed,  and 
the  fish  finally  reached  the  London  market,  considei-ably  deteriorated 
in  value. 

Were  this  principle  to  be  faithfully  carried  out,  it  is  obvious 


'THE  SUNDAY  WAR.'  203 

that  the  men  of  fhe  Outer  Isleft  must  give  up  all  thought  of  fishing 
for  the  market  on  Friday  and  Saturday,  as  their  cargoes  would  be 
left  to  decay  at  Strome  Ferry ! 

After  all  this  excitement  we  may  safely  assume  that  the  Sabba- 
tarian party  did  not  obey  the  injunction  to  labour  on-  the  first  of 
the  "  six  days,"  and  that  Monday's  shoals  did  not  suffer  at  their 
hands  I  Indeed  the  greater  part  of  the  week  was  devoted  to 
aiTanging  a  plan  of  action  for  the  following  Saturday  night,  when 
the  rioters  were  resolved  to  muster  in  much  larger  numbers,  and  so 
put  an  effectual  stop  to  this  "  Sabbath  breaking"  by  the  railway 
authorities. 

These,  however,  took  active  measures  for  the  repression  of  such 
interference.  A  body  of  about  two  hundred  police  was  brought 
together  from  various  districts,  so  far  south  as  Lanark,  and  assembled 
at  Strome  Ferry.  A  detachment  of  troops  was  also  despatched 
from  Edinburgh  to  Fort  George,  where  a  special  train  was  in  readi- 
ness to  convey  them  to  the  scene  of  action,  should  their  presence  be 
required. 

Late  on  Saturilay  night  the  Sabbatarian  party  mustered  in  force, 
and  great  excitement  prevailed.  Happily  the  clergy  of  the  district, 
who  had  liitherto  been  absent  at  the  General  Ai^sembly  in  Edinburgh, 
arrived  in  time  to  counsel  the  people  to  disperse  without  creating 
any  further  disturbance  ;  and  their  words,  combined  with  the  awe- 
inspiring  presence  of  so  large  a  police  force,  induced  the  crowd  to 
return  to  their  boats  about  midnight. 

About  ten  of  the  ringleaders  were  arrested,  and  were  ti-eated  as 
martyrs  to  the  good  cause. 

A  few  days  later  a  large  meeting  was  held  on  the  sea-shore  at 
Strome  Ferry,  presided  over  by  a  considerable  number  of  the  clergy 
and  elders  of  the  Free  Church  from  neighbouring  districts,  to 
demonstrate  that  Sunday  work  is  contrary  to  the  established  law  of 
Scotland,  which  orders  that  the  Sabbath  shall  be  kept  free  from 
work.  Parallels  were  drawn  between  the  demonstration  at  Strome 
Ferry  and  the  action  of  Kehemiah  (chap.  xiii.  15),  and  resolutions 
were  passed  to  resist  to  the  uttermost  all  attempts  to  authorize  any 
such  evil-doing  in  their  midst.     It  was  resolved  that  funds  should 


204  IN   THE  HEBRIDES. 

be  collected  for  the  defence  of  the  young  men  who  had  been  appre- 
hended. One  of  the  'reverend  speakers  declared  '*  that  he  could 
authoritatively  say,  on  behalf  of  many  in  Inverness  and  the  north 
generally,  that  they  approved  of  the  stand  the  men  had  made 
against  the  work  carried  on  at  Strome  on  Sunday.  He  knew 
that  it  would  not  be  allowed  to  go  on  in  any  other  place  except 
there,  and  the  company  was  taking  advantage  of  the  people  of 
the  distiict." 


HOLY  WELLS.  205 


CHAPTER  VII. 

MODERN   CHIPS   OF  THE   OLD   BLOCKS. 

"There's  something  in  that  ancient  superstition 
Which,  erring  as  it  is,  our  fancy  loves." 

Holy  Wells  in  the  Hebrides  and  in  the  Highlands— Prohibitory  Statutes- 
Wells  for  the  Cure  of  Insanity— Pilgrim's  Rags— Traces  of  Sun  and 
Fire  Worship — Four  great  Festivals — Beltane— Midsummer  in  Ireland, 
Isle  of  Man,  Stonehenge— Hallow-e'en— All  Souls— Yule— Christmas — 
The  Burning  of  the  Clavie— Dread  of  giving  or  taking  Fire— Festivals  in 
the  Pyrenees,  the  Alps,  the  Baltic,  in  Paris,  in  Edinburgh  and  London—. 
Traces  of  Moon  Worship— An  Owl's  Question. 

I  SPOKE  just  now  of  the  Holy  Well  of  Malruba  or  Mourie — Saint  or 
Demon — as  one  having  peculiar  interest. 

It  is,  however,  only  one  of  many  sacred  springs,  which  to  this 
day  are  held  in  some  sort  of  superstitious  reverence,  dimly  recalling 
the  days  when  the  people  there  assembled  to  worship  the  Celtic 
Groddess  of  Waters. 

.  Various  places  both  on  the  mainland  and  in  the  Hebrides,  still 
bear  her  name  of  Neith  or  Nait ;  Annat  bum  and  Annat  glen  in 
Perthshire ;  the  Tempul-na-Anait  in  Skye,  and  the  Tabir-na-Annait, 
or  Well  of  Neith,  in  the  little  island  of  Calligray  belonging  to 
Harris,  where  the  worshippers  purified  themselves  before  proceeding 
to  the  Teampull-na-Annait,  close  by — the  ruins  of  the  old  Christian 
Chapel,  retaining  the  name  of  the  heathen  goddess. 

Pennant,  writing  in  the  last  century,  says  that  in  the  Isle  of 


206  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

Skye  he  found  traces  of  four  temples  of  Anait ;  one  of  these  was 
near  Dunvegan.  In  each  case  they  were  huilt  at  the  spot  where 
two  rivers  met,  a  stone  wall  extending  from  stream  to  stream,  so  as 
to  fonn  with  the  two  waters  a  triangle,  in  the  centre  of  which  stood 
the  ruins  of  the  temple. 

One  far-famed  fountain  lies  at  the  foot  of  the  great  rock-mountain 
of  Quiraing,  where,  sheltered  by  the  greenest  of  grassy  hills,  are 
the  clear  crystalline  springs  of  Loch  Shiant,  whose  bright  waters 
gleam  over  a  bed  of  pure  sand,  and  are  still  considered  a  speciRc 
for  all  manner  of  diseases.  Pilgrimages  are  still  sometimes  made 
here,  and  the  usual  turn  sunwise  must  be  made  thrice  before  drink- 
ing, after  which  some  small  offering  is  laid  down  for  the  guardian 
spirit  of  the  well.  Formerly,  though  the  rivulet  and  the  loch  were 
alike  full  of  fish,  no  one  would  presume  to  touch  them  ;  they  were, 
in  fact,  esteemed  as  sacred  as  those  holy  fishes  which  fatten  in  the 
tanks  of  Himalayan  temples,  and  which  rise  mockingly  to  stare  at 
hungry  travellers. 

Close  by  the  loch  there  still  remains  some  low  brushwood, 
marking  where  formerly  a  copse  of  larger  bushes  flourished,  which, 
even  a  hundred  years  ago,  were  held  in  such  reverance  that  no  one 
might  venture  to  break  a  twig  from  their  branches.  This  probably 
was  the  latest  trace  of  the  tree-worship  once  commonly  practised  in 
these  isles. 

It  is  somewhat  singular  that  this  phase  of  idolatry  should  have 
died  out  so  wholly  in  all  Christianized  countries,  while  water,  fire, 
and  stones  retained  so  strong  a  hold  on  the  reverence  of  the  people. 
Vainly  did  the  Council  at  Aries,  in  a.d.  452,  decree  that  "if  in 
any  diocese  any  infidel  either  lighted  torches  or  worshipped  trees^ 
/onntahis,  or  stones,  he  shoidd  be  found  guilty  of  sacrilege."  Vainly 
did  divers  other  Councils  again  and  again  repeat  the  same  warning, 
especially  forbidding  the  lighting  of  torches  and  offering  candles 
and  other  gifts  to  these  three  sacred  powers.  Vainly,  too,  did 
King  Edgar  and  Canute  the  Great  forbid  the  barbarous  adoraiion 
of  the  sun  and  moon,  fire  and  fountains^  stones,  and  all  khuls  of 
trees  and  roood ;  still  the  people  clung  with  tenacity  to  all  their 
varied  forms  of  paganism,  except  the  worship  of  trees,  which  seems 


HOLY   WELLS.  207 

gradually  to  have  been  forgotten,  or  only  remembered  in  Germany, 
whence  we  have  borrowed  the  Yule  cuAtom  of  illuminatlDg  a  fir-tree 
with  ofiferings  of  candles. 

Gregory  of  Tours,  writing  in  the  sixth  century,  shows  that  woods, 
waters,  birds,  and  beasts,  were  still  commonly  worshipped.  Pope 
Gregory  III.,  in  740,  prohibited  the  Germans  from  offering  sacrifices 
and  consulting  auguries  beside  the  fountains  in  sacred  groves.  And 
80  late  as  a.d.  1102,  St.  Anselm  issued  commands  in  London,  for- 
bidding well- worship. 

In  Ireland  the  difficulty  was  solved  by  dedicating  the  wells  to 
saints,  whose  votaries  still  deposit  a  rag  or  a  pin,  to  represent  the 
more  precious  offerings  of  olden  days.  But  it  is  strange  indeed  to 
find  th'e  very  same  custom  still  lingering  in  this  land  of  sturdy 
common  sense,  and  to  find  that  divers  wells  and  lochs  are  still 
supposed  to  have  miraculous  powers  of  healing. 

For  instance,  there  is  a  loch  in  Strath  Naver  in  Sutlierland,  to 
which  people  constantly  resort  for  all  manner  of  cures.  They  must 
walk  backwards  into  the  water,  take  their  dip,  and  leave  a  small 
coin  as  an  offering.  Then  without  looking  round  they  must  walk 
straight  back  to  the  land,  and  so,  right  away  from  the  loch. 

St.  Eonan's  Well,  near  the  Butt  of  Lewis,  is  one  to  which 
lunatics  are  occasionally  brought  from  many  parts  of  the  north- 
western Highlands.  Very  near  to  it  is  a  small  ruin,  evidently  of 
yery  great  antiquity,  which  is  Christianized  as  the  Temple  of  St. 
Molochus,  or  Mulvay,  or  Molonah,  but  which  the  people  often  call 
simply  the  Teampull-mor,  t.  e.  "  The  Great  Temple  "  (a  title  which, 
considering  its  size,  could  only  have  referred  to  its  sanctity). 
Patients  are  required  to  walk  seven  times  round  the  temple.  Then 
they  are  sprinkled  with  water  brought  from  St.  Ronan's  Well  in 
a  stone  cup,  whicb  is  in  the  hereditary  care  of  a  family  whose 
ancestor  was  "  clerk  of  the  temple." 

.  After  the  sprinkling  the  sufferer  is  bound,  and  laid  for  the  night 
on  the  site  of  the  ancient  altar.  Should  he  sleep,  it  is  a  sure 
earnest  of  his  recovery ;  but  should  he  be  wakeful,  then  further 
effort  is  considered  useless. 

In  a  churchyard  on  Loch  Torridon  there  is  a  well  where,  for 


208  IN   THE  HEBRIDES. 

centuries,  three  stones  have  been  perpetually  whirling  round  and 
round.  All  manner  of  illnesses  have  been  cured  by  carrying  one  of 
these  stones  in  a  bucket  of  water  to  the  patient,  who  touched  the 
stone,  after  which  it  was  carried  back  to  its  usual  place,  and  began 
whirling  as  usual.  But  one  day,  a  foolish  woman  carried  home  one 
of  them  in  her  bucket  to  heal  a  sick  goat,  and  when  it  was  put 
back,  it  would  no  longer  whirl,  but  sank  to  the  bottom  of  the  well, 
where  it  has  lain  quietly  ever  since. 

All  these  well-stories  seem  to  prove  the  spirits  terribly  prone  to. 
take  offence.  I  told  you  how  St.  Malruba's  well  lost  all  healing 
virtue,  since  the  day  when  a  mad  dog  was  dipped  into  it.  Another 
spring  which  was  held  in  especial  reverence  was  the  Tonbir  Rnabir 
in  Islay,  literally  the  locomotive  well,  so  called  because  it  was 
originally  in  Isle  Colonsay ;  but  one  day  a  rash  woman  was  guilty 
of  washing  her  hands  in  it,  whereupon  it  instantly  dried  up,  and 
transported  its  waters  to  Islay,  whence  it  was  henceforth  honoured 
with  Deisul  processions,  and  small  offerings  were  made  to  its  tutelary 
spirit. 

At  Broadford  in  Skye  there  is  a  well  in  the  churchyard,  near  to 
which  used  to  hang  a  bell,  that  rang  supernaturally  about  once  a 
week.  No  human  bell-ringer  had  any  hand  in  producing  the  wild 
chimes  that  rang  out  so  loud  and  clear  that  they  could  be  heard 
for  miles,  giving  warning  to  all  the  sick  folk  to  come  to  the  healing 
waters  and  be  made  whole.  But  a  new  power  at  last  interfered 
(minister  or  steward),  and  the  bell  was  removed,  since  which  time 
the  virtue  of  the  well  is  gone,  and  the  people  are  left  to  the  tender 
mercies  of  a  human  leech. 

St.  Catherine's  well  and  chapel  in  the  Isle  of  Eigg  were  also 
treated  with  much  reverence.  So  was  that  at  Sleat  in  the  Isle 
of  Skye. 

One  loch  in  Eoss-shire  is  still  said  to  cure  deafness,  and  the 
neighbours  told  me  of  one  man  who  had  undoubtedly  recovered  his 
hearing  by  judicious  adherence  to  the  letter  of  the  law ;  thrice  he 
had  walked  backwards  into  the  water,  and  thrice  returned  to  land 
without  looking  round.  Their  admiration  of  the  cure  was  some* 
what  damped  by  the  fact  of  the  man's  death  within  a  year.     The 


MAT  MORNING.  209 

well  at  Craig-Howe  in  Ross-shire  also  cures  deafness,  and  receives 
large  stores  of  clouts,  pins,  and  coins. 

In  the  parish  of  Avock,  in  the  Black  Isles  (facing  Inverness),  is 
a  well  called  Craiguck,  or  Craigie  Well,  probably  from  the  dark 
crag  rising  behind  it.  On  the  first  Sunday  in  May  (old  style)  all 
the  people  from  far  and  near  gather  here  at  daybreak — a  regular 
hearty  Highland  gathering — ^as  merry  as  a  fair,  all  exchanging 
kindly  greetings  and  good  wishes  for  the  health  of  the  coming  year, 
in  good  broad  Scotch,  in  Gaelic,  or  in  such  pure  English  as  we 
rarely  hear  from  the  poor  in  any  part  of  Britain,  save  here,  where 
it  is  an  acquired  tongue.  The  health,  of  course,  is  to  be  secured  by 
9  draught  of  the  lucky  welL  But  they  must  get  their  drink  before 
the  sun  rises.  Once  he  climbs  the  horizon  the  spell  is  broken,  so, 
as  the  last  moments  draw  near,  the  eager  pressing  forward  for  a 
taste  amounts  to  a  downright  scramble. 

A  stranger,  whose  curiosity  induced  him  to  go  forth  betimes  and 
witness  this  curious  scene,  tells  how  "  some  drank  out  of  dishes, 
some  stooped  on  their  knees  to  drink,  the  latter  being  occasionally 
plunged  over  head  and  ears  by  their  companions.'*  As  the  first  rays 
of  the  sun  appeared  a  man  was  seen  coming  down  the  brae  in  great 
haste.  He  was  recognized  as  ''  Jock  Forsyth,"  a  very  honest  and 
pious,  but  eccentric  individual.  Scores  of  voices  shouted,  **  You 
are  too  late,  Jock.  The  sun  is  rising.  Surely  you  have  slept  in 
this  morning." 

The  new-comer,  a  middle-aged  man,  perspiring  profusely,  and  out 

of  breath,  nevertheless  pressed  through  the  crowd  and  never  stopped 

till  he  reached  the  well.     Then,  muttering  a  few  inaudible  words, 

he  stooped  on  his  knees  and  took  a  large  draught.     Then  he  rose 

and  said,  "  O  Lord,  Thou  knowest  that  weel  would  it  be  for  me 

this  day,  an'  I  had  stoopit  my  knees  and  my  heart  before  Thee  in 

spirit  and  in  truth,  as  often  as  I  have  stoopit  them  afore  this  well. 

But  we  maun  keep  the  customs  of  our  fathers."     So  he  stepped 

aside  among  the  rest  and  dedicated  his  offering  to  the  briar  bush, 

which  by  this  time  could  hardly  be  seen  through  the  number  of 

shreds  which  covered  it. 

For  part  of  the  ceremony  is  that  each  comer  must  hang  a  shred 

p 


210  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

of  clotli  on  a  large  briar  bush,  which  grows  close  by  the  well,  as  an 
ofifering  to  the  healing  and  luck-conferring  waters,  forcibly  remind- 
ing the  beholder  of  those  holy  wells  and  bushes  in  the  Emerald 
Isle,  were  many  coloured  rags  flutter  in  the  breeze ;  poor  Paddy's 
Totive  offerings  to  the  blessed  St.  Somebody  on  behalf  of  sick 
parent  or  child. 

Strange,  is  it  not,  that  this  custom  should  be  so  widely  spread  1 
We  find  it  at  Constantinople,  where  each  pilgrim  ties  a  shred  torn 
from  his  own  raiment  to  the  carved  windows  of  saintly  tombs ; 
and  it  is  religiously  observed  by  the  Mohammedan  pilgrims  visiting 
the  Mosque  of  Omar  at  Jerusalem,  beneath  the  great  dome  of 
which  lies  that  huge  rock  whence  Mohammed  ascended  to  heaven, 
supposed  to  be  the  identical  rock  whereon  Abraham  did  not  sacrifice 
Isaac.  This  rock  is  surrounded  by  a  great  iron  railing,  adorned 
with  thousands  of  rags,  tied  up  by  the  pilgrims  as  reminders  to  the 
Prophet  Indeed,  strips  of  old  cloth  seem  to  be  a  recognized 
medium  of  communication  with  the  spirit-world  in  all  corners  of 
the  globe,  for  in  our  Eastern  wanderings  we  found  many  a  gaily- 
decorated  shnib  in  the  lonely  Himalayan  glens  and  passes,  which, 
in  the  distance,  seemed  to  be  loaded  with  blossoms,  but  which 
on  closer  approach  proved  to  be  laden  with  bright  morsels  of  rag, 
the  simple  offerings  of  the  Hill-men  to  the  spirit  of  some  tree 
or  well. 

In  Ceylon  also,  where  we  spent  a  lovely  moonlight  night  on  the 
summit  of  Adam's  Peak,  the  "  Holy  Mount "  of  Buddhists,  Sivaites, 
and  Mohammedans,  we  noted  the  multitude  of  rags  tied  to  the  iron 
chains  which  prevent  the  roof  of  the  temple,  covering  the  holy 
footprint,  from  being  blown  away.  The  poor  pilgrims  believe  that 
a  shred  of  their  raiment,  thus  offered,  will  surely  prevent  Buddha 
from  forgetting  them  and  their  vows.  On  these  superstitious 
customs  in  far-away  lands  we  look  with  calm  indifference,  but  to 
find  the  very  same  practice  still  lingering  among  our  sturdy  Hoss- 
shire  Highlanders,  is  certainly  somewhat  startling  I 
'  Similar  customs  are  still  kept  up  at  St.  Mary's  Well,  in  the 
birch  wood  above  the  house  of  Culloden,  two  miles  from  Inverness, 
where,  on  this  same  morning  (first  Sunday  in  May,  old  style). 


NO  LOOKING  BACK.  211 

several  hundred  people  assemble  from  far  and  near,  to  wish  for 
their  heart's  desire,  drink  solemnly,  and  hang  up  a  rag  on  the 
bushes  before  sunrise,  as  being  a  most  efficacious  hour,  though  they 
continue  coming  as  long  as  the  dew  lies  on  the  grass,  which  it  often 
does  all  day.  Formerly  a  chapel  stood  close  by,  but  its  ruins  have 
now  disappeared. 

There  were  certain  wells  from  which  water  was  carried  to  the 
sick.  It  was  necessary  that  it  should  be  drawn  before  sunrise, 
that  the  bearer  should  not  speak  on  his  way  to  or  from  the  well, 
neither  open  his  lips  till  the  sick  man  had  drunk  the  life-giving 
potion.  Nor  might  the  water-vessel  be  allowed  to  touch  the 
ground.  There  were  also  peculiar  virtues  belonging  to  water  drawn 
from  under  a  bridge  "  over  which  the  living  walked  and  the  dead 
were  carried."  Especial  virtue  was  attached  to  south-running 
water. 

One  condition  of  success  in  all  these  charms  was  that  there 
should  be  no  looking  backward,  a  point  strongly  insisted  on  by  all 
wizards,  in  all  landa 

All  lads  and  lasses  who,  on  Hallow-e'en,  peer  into  the  looking- 
glass  for  visions  of  the  future,  know  well  that  they  must  not 
dare  to  glance  backward,  lest  they  should  see  more  than  they 
ought 

One  curious  legend  of  my  own  dear  old  home,  tells  how  Sir 
Robert  Gordon  of  Gordonstown,  who  was  well  known  to  have 
dealings  with  the  powers  of  darkness,  chose  one  morning  to  drive 
his  coach  and  four  across  Loch  Spynie,  after  a  single  night's  frost. 
He  bade  his  servant  to  sit  steady,  and  on  no  account  look  back. 
The  man  obeyed,  till  just  as  they  reached  the  further  side,  he  could 
not  resist  **  a  glower  ower  his  left  shoulder,"  and  as  ho  turned,  he 
beheld  a  large  black  raven  fly  from  the  back  of  the  carriage,  which 
at  the  same  instant  sank  into  the  mud,  so  near  the  edge,  however, 
that  the  good  steeds  managed  to  extricate  it  without  further  aid 
from  the  spirit  world. 

These  sacred  wells  seem  to  have  been  reverenced  all  over  the 

country,  and  every  now  and  then  the  records  of  the  kirk  'sessions 

tell  of  some  luckless  wight  having  been  subjected  to  discipline  for 

p  a 


212  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

heathenish  practices  as  an  example  to  all  other  offenders,  without, 
however,  producing  the  desired  effect. 

Among  the  various  efforts  made  to  check  the  Well-Worship  in  the 
seventeenth  century  was  an  order  from  the  Privy  Council,  appoint- 
ing Commissioners  "  to  wait  at  Christ's  well  in  Menteith  on  the 
first  of  May,  and  to  seize  all  who  might  assemhle  at  the  spring,  and 
imprison  them  in  Doune  Castle. 

These  "  superstitious  mud-earth-wells  of  Menteith  "  are  descrihed 
by  Anderson,  Dr.  of  Physicke,  Edinburgh,  a.d.  1618,  as  "all 
tapestried  about  with  old  rags,  as  certaine  signes  and  sacraments 
whereioith  they  arle  the  divell  with  ane  arls-pennie  of  their  health ; 
80  suttle  is  that  false  Jmave^  making  them  believe  it  is  only  the 
virtue  of  the  water,  and  no  thing  els.  Such  people  cannot  say  with 
David  '  The  Lord  is  my  Helper,'  but  the  Devill." 

Great  efforts  were  then  made  to  extinguish  heathenism  of  all 
sorts,  necromancies,  and  spells  with  trees  and  with  stones. 

Nevertheless,  as  we  have  seen,  the  old  superstition  still  lingers 
in  certain  districts.  At  Glass,  in  Banffshire,  the  Wallack  Well 
and  tlie  Corsmall  Well  still  receive  pins,  buttons,  rags,  and  coins 
from  sick  folk,  who  hope  thereby  to  be  cured  of  their  diseases.  So 
does  St.  Mungo's  Well  in  Huntly,  where  the  people  assemble  on 
the  first  of  May,  and  carry  away  bottles  of  its  water  as  a  charm 
against  the  fairies,  who  are  supposed  to  hold  their  revels  at  the 
Elfin  Croft  hard  by.  I  thought  of  this  custom  while  watching  the 
pilgrims  near  the  source  of  the  Ganges  sealing  up  bottles  of  the 
precious  water,  which  they  carry  with  them  to  their  far-distant 
homes,  therewith  to  anoint  their  most  cherished  idols. 

Another  favourite  well  has  always  been  that  of  St.  Cecilia,  near 
Ketherdale  in  Aberdeenshire  :  some  strong  enforcements  of  the  law 
of  trespass  have,  however,  recently  checked  the  meetings  here. 
The  same  law  did  its  best  to  check  the  gatherings  at  the  old  well 
at  Hopeman  in  Morayshire,  but  the  sturdy  fishers  there  do  not 
understand  such  interference  with  their  ancient  customs,  so  they  are 
now  left  undisturbed. 

St.  Fcrgon's  Well,  near  Inverlochy,  is  another  which  is  said  to 
possess  divers  virtues,  and  continues  to  be  a  favourite  place  of 


HOLT  WELLS.  213 

tesort — ^the  general  offering  to  its  spirit  being  a  crooked  pin,  or,  on 
rare  occasions, ''  a  bawbee." 

The  well  at  Metherclonie,  near  Dufftown,  is  a  great  gathering- 
point  on  May  morning,  when  the  usual  offerings  of  pins,  &c.  are 
made.  The  well  of  Montblairie,  also  in  Banffshire,  is  equally 
sacred ;  so  is  St.  Colman's  Well,  in  the  parish  of  Kilteam,  in  Eoss- 
shire,  and  that  of  Culbokie,  also  in  Eoss-shire. 

But  perhaps  the  most  popular  of  all  is  the  Greuze  Well,  near 
Dunkeld,  which  is  still  frequented  by  people  from  all  parts  of  the 
country,  who  bring  their  sick  children,  that,  having  tasted  the 
mystic  waters,  they  may  be  healed.  The  offerings  here  are  of  a  very 
superior  sort,  as  silver  coin  is  occasionally  thrown  in  instead  of  the 
more  frequent  pins  and  pence ;  and  rags  and  scraps  of  the  sick 
folk's  clothes  are  left  hanging  on  the  heathery  tufts,  as  a  reminder 
to  the  spirit  of  the  Greuze.  Such  offerings  are  especially  common 
on  behalf  of  idiot  children. 

St.  Mary's  Well  at  Orton,  on  Spey-side,  still  continues  to  attract 
crowds  on  certain  days,  chiefly  of  young  folk,  who  here  hold  their 
tryst — ^lads  and  lasses  who  count  on  a  day's  sweethearting  and 
merry-making;  but  for. more  serious  purposes,  such  as  quest  of 
health,  it  seems  to  have  somewhat  lost  favour  lately,  though  it  is 
not  long  since  we  noticed  a  girl  hiding  the  cap  of  a  sick  baby  under 
a  stone,  as  though  shrinking  from  observation. 

In  Badenoch,  however,  there  is  no  such  shame.  There  are  wells 
for  heart-ache  and  wells  for  tooth-ache,  and  one  well  that  is  bottom- 
less, for  when  careless  hands  drop  their  pails  therein  they  can  never 
be  recovered. 

St.  Fillan's  Well,  in  Perthshire,  has  been  held  sacred  from  time 
immemorial,  though  the  name  it  bears  dates  only  from  the  days  of 
that  sainted  abbot  of  Strath-Fillan,  to  whose  pious  intervention 
Bruce  was  said  to  owe  the  victory  of  Bannockbum.  The  King's 
chaplain  had  been  commanded  (so  says  Boethius)  to  bring  to  the 
field  of  battle  the  sacred  arm  of  the  saint ;  but  the  wily  priest, 
fearing  the  loss  of  the  relic,  brought  only  its  silver  shrine.  Yet 
when  the  King  invoked  the  holy  saint,  the  shrine  opened  of  its 
own  accord,  revealing  the  precious  limb  laid  safely  therein ;  and  the 


214  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

soldiers  beholding  this  token  of  the  favour  of  heayen,  fought  as 
those  already  assured  of  victory. 

St.  Fillan's  Well  was  long  believed  to  cure  insanity,  and  the 
luckless  sufferers  received  very  rough  handling  to  effect  this,  being 
thrown  from  a  high  rock  down  into  the  well,  and  then  locked  up 
for  the  night  in  the  rained  chapel.  On  ''  the  witch-elm  that  shades 
St.  Fillan's  spring ''  were  hung  the  gay  rags  and  scraps  of  ribbon 
wherein  the  saint  was  supposed  to  find  delight.  An  average  of 
two  hundred  patients  were  annually  brought  to  this  well. 

Precisely  similar  was  the  belief  of  the  Welsh  in  the  waters  of 
Llandegla  for  the  cure  of  both  epilepsy  and  insanity.  The  luckless 
patient  was  led  thrice  sunwise  round  the  Holy  Well,  where  he  was 
to  wash  himself  and  cast  in  an  offering.  He  was  then  to  carry 
a  cock  thrice  sunwise  round  the  well,  and  thrice  round  the  church, 
and  was  then  bound  for  the  night  and  left  lying  beneath  the 
Communion  Table,  with  his  head  resting  on  the  Bible — a  curious 
blending  of  "  the  Table  of  the  Lord  "  with  the  service  of  devils. 
If  the  patient  was  a  woman,  a  hen  was  substituted  for  the  cock. 
In  either  case  the  victim  was  imprisoned  with  the  patient,  that 
into  it  the  demon  of  insanity  might  pass.  In  the  morning  the 
patient  made  an  offering  of  money,  and  departed,  leaving  the  fowl 
as  his  substitute. 

A  very  important  feature  in  the  ceremonial  at  St.  Fillan's, 
Struthill,  and  other  wells  where  lunatics  were  cured,  is,  that  after 
their  bath  in  the  holy  fountain  and  their  sunwise  procession,  they 
were  tied  to  a  pillar,  supposed  to  be  far  more  ancient  than  the 
Christian  church  wherein  it  stood.  Just  such  a  pillar,  in  the 
ruined  city  of  Anarajapoora,  in  Ceylon,  is  said  to  be  possessed  of 
precisely  similar  virtues,  and  though  the  natives  call  it  an  old 
Buddhist  monument,  it  is  probably  a  relic  of  a  much  earlier 
superstition. 

Then,  too,  the  legend  which  tells  how  Gautama  Buddha  first 
realized  his  having  attained  perfection,  by  finding  that  a  dish, 
which  he  placed  on  the  water,  would  float  miraculously  against  the 
current  of  the  stream,  is  much  the  same  notion  as  we  find  connected 
with  various  holy  wells;  such  as  the  Well  of  Shadar,  in  Isle 


BELTANE.  215 

Bemera,  whereon  a  wooden  bowl  was  set  floating  as  a  means  of 
discovering  whether  a  sick  person  would  or  would  not  rally. 
Should  the  dish  turn  deisid,  all  would  be  well,  but  if  toiddershins^ 
then  doom  i^as  sealed. 

St.  Andrew's  Well,  in  the  Isle  of  Lewis,  was  also  consulted  as 
an  oracle  when  any  one  was  dangerously  ilL  A  wooden  tub  full 
of  this  waterwas  brought  to  the  sick  man's  room,  and  a  small  dish 
was  set  floating  on  the  surface  of  the  water ;  if  it  turned  sunwise 
it  was  supposed  that  the  patient  would  recover,  otherwise  he  must 
die. 

Of  equal,  if  not  greater,  interest  than  these  survivals  of  the  old 
Well-Worship,  are  those  which  point  to  the  Worship  of  Fire  and 
of  the  Heavenly  Bodies — antiquarian  chips  for  which  we  must  seek 
warily,  and  chiefly  amongst  the  unlettered  poor,  who  walk  after  the 
traditions  of  their  fathers,  without  any  wish  to  seek  out  new 
inventions. 

We  have  not  to  search  fa!r  for  the  first  indication,  inasmuch  as 
the  Highlanders  still  call  the  year  Bheil>aine,  i.  e,  "  the  circle  of 
Bel,  or  the  Sun." 

Of  course,  in  seeking  for  traces  of  the  old  Fire- Worship,  we  are 
most  likely  to  find  them  on  those  days  when  the  great  Fire  Festivals 
were  celebrated.  Of  these,  the  four  principal  were  held  on  the  eve 
of  May-day  or  Spring ;  on  Midsummer's  eve ;  on  Hallow-e'en,  the 
Autumn  festival ;  and  at  Yule,  the  mid-winter  feast. 

It  is  from  the  great  Spring  Festival  that  we  still  retain  our 
poetical  name  for  the  eve  of  May-day,  Beltane  or  Beil-teine,  which 
means  Baal's  fire,  a  name  familiar  to  every  Highlander,  and  still 
commonly  used  in  Ireland. 

So  late  as  the  beginning  of  the  present  century,  it  was  customary 
in  some  remote  comers  of  the  Highlands,  especially  in  Stirlingshire 
and  Perthshire,  for  the  young  folk  to  meet  on  the  moors  on  the 
Ist  of  May,  and. after  cutting  a  "round  table"  in  the  green  sod  by 
digging  such  a  trench  round  it  as  to  allow  of  their  sitting  in  a  great 
circle,  to  kindle  a  fire  in  the  middle,  and  cook  a  mess  of  eggs  and 
milk,  which  all  shared.  Then  they  baked  oat-cakes,  a  bit  for  each 
person  present,  and  one  bit  was  burnt  black. 


216  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

These  cakes  were  shuffled  in  a  man's  bonnet,  and  each  person, 
blindfold,  drew  one.  Whoever  got  the  black  bit  had  to  leap  three 
times  through  the  flames.  The  original  meaning  of  which  was  that 
he  became  a  sacrifice  to  Baal,  and,  doubtless,  in  old  days  was 
actually  offered  up ;  the  object  being  to  secure  the  favour  of  the 
Sun-god,  and  consequently  a  good  harvest.  I  have  been  told  by 
several  persons  that  they  have  found  traces  of  these  Beltane  circles 
in  quite  recent  years,  so  probably  the  practice  is  not  yet  extinct. 

I  am  told  that  in  some  parts  of  Perthshire  it  is  still  the  custom 
for  the  cow-herd  of  the  village  to  go  his  rounds  on  May  morning 
collecting  fresh  eggs  and  meal,  and  then  to  lead  the  way  to  some 
hill-top,  where  a  hole  is  dug  and  a  fire  lighted  therein ;  then  lots 
are  cast,  and  he  on  whom  the  lot  falls,  must  leap  seven  times  over 
the  fire,  while  the  young  folk  dance  round  in  a  circle.  Then  they 
cook  their  eggs  and  cakes,  and  all  **  sit  down  to  eat  and  drink  and 
rise  up  to  play." 

The  circular  trench  was  of  course  only  another  form  of  the  same 
symbolism  as  the  Druidic  stone  circles,  within  which  the  fires  of 
Baal  were  continually  kept  burning.  A  curious  proof  of  this  is  the 
fact,  recorded  by  the  late  Lady  Baird,  of  Ferntower,  in  Perthshire, 
that  every  year  at  Beltane  a  number  of  men  and  women  assembled 
at  an  ancient  circle  of  stones  on  her  property  near  Crieff,  and, 
having  lighted  a  fire  in  the  centre,  as  their  forefathers  had  been 
accustomed  to  do  from  time  immemorial,  proceeded  to  draw  lots  for 
the  burnt  oat-cake,  as  described  above,  he  who  drew  it  having 
straightway  to  leap  through  the  flames.  A  strangely  unmeaning 
ceremony  if,  as  some  learned  men  would  have  us  believe,  these 
circles  are  merely  sepulchral,  but  very  suggestive  indeed  if  we  are 
content  to  accept  the  traditions  of  our  fathers,  of  their  having  been 
the  temples  on  whose  altars  unhallowed  fire  was  wont  to  bum. 

In  some  districts  the  shepherds  varied  the  Beltane  festival. 
They  cut  the  circular  trench  and  kindled  a  fire  like  their  neigh- 
bours, and  after  marching  thrice  deaa-scl  round  the  fire,  they  sat  in 
a  great  circle  and  shared  the  mess  of  eggs,  milk,  and  oat-meal,  pour- 
ing out  part  thereof  as  a  libation  to  the  spirits.  This  done,  they 
each  took  pieces  of  oat-cake,  specially  prepared  for  the  occasioDj 


EFFICACY  OF  A  ROWAN  TWIG.  £17 

each  cake  having  upon  it  nine  raised  knobs  of  mystic  meaning. 
This  they  cast  into  the  fire,  dedicating  it  to  the  Eagle,  the  Hoodie 
Crow,  the  Gled,  the  Weasel,  the  Fox,  the  Brock,  and  all  other 
baneful  creatures,  who  were  thus  bribed  to  spare  the  flocks.  This 
custom  was  commonly  observed  up  to  the  middle  of  last  century, 
even  in  civilized  Morayshire.  When  all  the  eggs  were  roasted  and 
all  the  cakes  baked,  the  surplus  was  carried  home,  and  every  man 
gathered  certain  herbs,  which  he  tied  to  his  staff,  and  fastened 
bunches  of  the  same  above  his  cow-byre  to  preserve  his  cattle  from 
all  disease  until  the  following  May-day. 

Every  cow-herd  was  bound  to  wear  a  sprig  of  rowan  (mountain 
ash),  to  keep  off  the  warlocks  from  his  charge,  and  no  cow-byre 
was  accounted  safe  which  was  not  provided  with  cross-twigs  of 
rowan  tied  with  red  thread. 

At  Beltane,  rowan-twigs  wore  carried  thrice  sunwise  round  the 
bonfires,  then  carried  home,  and  placed  in  every  house  to  ward  off 
all  evil  in  the  coming  year.  On  the  same  day  the  farmers  of 
Strathspey  and  Inverness  were  wont  to  make  a  twisted  hoop  of 
rowan,  and  cause  each  sheep  and  lamb  to  pass  through  it,  till  the 
whole  flock  had  thus  been  secured  from  harm. 

Every  cow-herd  having  a  due  regard  to  the  safety  of  his  cattle 
would  certainly  drive  his  beasts  with  a  rowan  stick.  In  Forfar- 
shire we  know  of  certain  byres  where,  if  even  the  rowan  tree  and 
red  thread  have  failed  to  keep  away  disease,  the  cow-herd  invari- 
ably places  a  burning  peat  on  the  threshold  of  the  byre,  and  makes 
the  sick  beasts  walk  over  it,  as  a  sure  and  infallible  cure ;  while  in 
Islay  the  custom  is  on  May  morning  to  smear  the  ears  of  the  cattle 
with  tar  to  keep  off  the  warlocks. 

One  very  ancient  custom  for  the  good  of  the  cattle  was  to  take  a 
sod  from  the  roof  of  the  byre,  and  a  burning  peat,  and  plunge  both 
in  a  pail  of  strong  ale, — a  drink  which  was  made  from  the  young 
tops  of  heather,  with  a  certain  proportion  of  malt ;  it  seems  to  have 
been  the  favourite  brew  of  the  ancient  Picts,  but  the  art  of  prepar- 
ing it  is  now  lost. 

I  am  told  that  to  see  a  really  characteristic  celebration  of  Beltane 
we  should  go  to  the  Isle  of  Man,  where  the  month  of  May  is  still 


218  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

called  Boabdyn,  or  Baal's  fire,  and  where  the  custom  of  bonfires  on 
the  eye  of  May-day  is  kept  up  to  such  an  extent  ''as  to  give  the 
appearance  of  a  general  conflagration,  whilst  the  inhabitants  blow 
boms  and  hold  a  kind  of  jubilee/'  Until  very  recently  the  Manx 
used  to  light  two  fires  near  together,  and  cause  their  cattle  to  pass 
between  them,  as  a  protection  against  murrain.  The  origin  of 
these  fires  was  of  course  in  honour  of  Baal. 

The  same  custom  prevailed  in  Ireland  up  to  the  tenth  centuiy, 
where  May-day  is  still  called  La  Bealtine,  or  Latba,  which  in 
Celtic  means  day ;  and  is  to  be  traced  in  many  parts  of  Germany 
and  Holland,  whei*e  the  Beltane  fire  festivals  are  still  fully  observed. 

The  next  great  Fire  Festival  was  on  what  we  now  call  the  eve 
of  St.  John,  or  Midsummer's  Eve,  when  the  Sun  had  run  half  his 
course. 

In  Scotland,  the  Midsummer's  Eve  Festival  was  observed  till 
very  recent  times.  It  was  customary  to  kindle  great  bonfires  near 
the  corn-fields,  and  then  make  the  deisul  round  the  fields,  with 
burning  torches,  to  secure  a  blessing  on  the  crops.  Shaw  mentions 
having  frequently  seen  this  done  both  in  Moray  and  in  the  Low- 
lands in  the  middle  of  the  last  century.  In  Cornwall  also  the  feast 
was,  till  quite  lately,  celebrated  in  various  villages,  and  in  all  proba- 
bility is  still  kept  up.  Great  bonfires  blazed,  and  torchlight  pro- 
cessions marched  sunwise  round  the  fires  and  round  the  village. 

In  Ireland  too  this  night  was  long  considered  an  occasion  for 
rejoicing;  and  so  late  as  1795  a  gentleman  writes  from  Dublin  to 
one  of  the  magazines,  describing  ''  the  lighting  of  the  fires  at  mid- 
night in  honour  of  the  sun ;  the  clamours,  and  other  ceremonies^ 
such  as  strewing  the  streets  with  divers  herbs." 

Charlotte  Elizabeth,  describing  the  huge  bonfires  in  Ireland,  and 
the  scenes  she  herself  witnessed,  tells  how  the  people  all  danced 
everlasting  jigs  to  the  music  of  the  pipes.  This  lasted  some  hours. 
Then,  when  the  fire  burnt  low,  every  one  present  pckssed  through  the 
fire,  and  cJiildren  were  throum  across  the  glowing  embers.  Lord 
John  Scott,  speaking  of  the  same  festival,  says  he  has  seen  parents 
force  unwilling  children  to  pass  through  these  purifying  Baal  fires. 

The  custom  of  passing  children  and  cattle  through  the  fire  was 


MIDSUMMER  DAWN   IN  8T0NEHENGE.  219 

one  of  the  rites  which  was  longest  in  force  in  these  isles.  Even  in 
the  early  part  of  this  century,  it  was,  as  we  have  already  noticed, 
the  constant  practice  at  these  festivals,  hoth  in  the  Highlands  and 
in  Ireland,  for  fathers  to  take  their  children  in  their  arms  aud  leap 
thrice  through  the  flames.  The  cattle  were  driven  between  two 
fires  kindled  near  together.  It  was  also  the  custom  to  make 
criminals  stand  between  two  fires,  to  expiate  their  sins,  or  else 
walk  barefoot  thrice  over  the  burning  ashes  of  a  cam-fire.  Hence 
the  Gaelic  description  of  a  man  in  dire  extremity,  that  he  was 
'*  Edir  da  theine  Bheil,''  that  is,  between  two  fires  of  BaaL 

Perhaps  the  most  interesting  trace  that  still  remains  to  us  of  this 
Midsummer  homage  to  the  Sun  is  a  custom  which,  for  ages  un- 
known, has  been  observed  at  Stonehenge,  and  which  acquires 
double  importance  in  these  days,  when  this,  and  all  kindred  build- 
ings, are  set  down  as  being  either  merely  sepulchral,  or  else 
memorials  of  old  battles.  Mr.  William  Beck  writes,  that  every 
year,  on  21st  June,  a  number  of  people  assemble  on  Salisbury 
Plain  at  3  a.m.,  in  the  chill  of  early  dawn,  and  make  for  the 
circles  of  Stonehenge,  from  the  centre  of  which,  looking  north-east, 
a  block  of  stone,  set  at  some  distance  from  the  ruin,  is  so  seen  that 
its  top  coincides  twith  the  line  of  the  horizon,  and  if  no  mist  pre- 
vail, the  Sun,  as  it  rises  on  this,  the  longest  day  of  the  year,  will  he 
seen  coming  up  exactly  over  the  centre  of  the  stone,  known  from  this 
circumstance  as  the  Pointer. 

Mr.  Beck  has  himself  repeatedly  witnessed  this  interesting  proof 
of  the  solar  arrangement  of  the  circles  of  Stonehenge ;  has  watched 
the  Sun  thus  come  up  over  the  Pointer,  and  strike  its  first  ray, 
through  the  central  entrance,  to  the  so-called  altar-stone  qf  the  ruin. 
He  points  out  how  this  same  huge  stone  is  set  at  such  an  angle  that 
at  noon  it  marks  the  shadow  like  the  gnomon  of  a  sun-dial. 

The  great  Autumn  Fire  Festival  seems  to  have .  occurred  on  the 
1st  November,  when  all  fires  were  extinguished,  save  those  of  the 
Druids,  from  whose  altars  only,  the  holy  fire  must  be  purchased  by 
all  householders,  for  a  certain  price. 

The  festival  is  still  known  in  Ireland  as  Samhein  or  La  Samon, 
•'.  e.  the  Feast  of  the  Sun ;  and  on  the  eve  of  the  1st  of  Kovember 


220  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

all  manner  of  old  games  and  customs  are  still  observed  just  as  fully 
as  in  Scotland,  where,  however,  though  All  Saints'  Day  is  a  thing 
forgotten,  the  heathen  festival  has  assumed  the  name  of  Hallow-e'en. 

Of  the  countless  varieties  of  Hallow-e'en  games,  it  would  be 
superfluous  to  write,  as  they  are  so  well  known.  Only  it  is  curious 
to  notice  that  they  all  retain  some  trace  of  old  practices  of 
divination. 

First,  the  mystic  apple  comes  into ^  play  —  the  apple  that  so 
often  appears  in  Celtic  fairy  lore.  These  swim  in  water,  and  each 
person  in  turn  must  catch  one  in  his  mouth.  The  apple  when 
canp;ht  must  be  carefully  peeled,  and  the  long  strip  of  peel  passed 
thrice,  sunwise,  round  the  head,  and  thrown  over  the  shoulder, 
when  it  will  fall  in  the  form  of  the  true  love's  initial-letter. 

Then,  advancing  to  a  mirror,  without  looking  back,  a  face  will 
presently  be  therein  reflected,  looking  over  the  shoulder,  and  it 
needs  good  nerve  to  resist  looking  round,  which  is  always  strictly 
proliibited  in  every  form  of  superstition.  This  too  is  a  relic  of 
that  form  of  divination  with  mirrors  which  was  condemned  as 
sorcery  by  the  pojyes  of  old.  Hence  we  find  hand-mirrors  among  the 
emblems  sculptured  on  the  stones  of  Pagan  Scotland, 

Numerous  are  the  other  Hallow-e'en  games,  but  all  have  some- 
thing of  the  same  character.  The  majority  involve  going  out  alone 
on  some  errand — to  pull  a  cabbage-stalk,  or  walk  sunwise  round 
the  peat-stack.  It  is  supposed  that  some  one  will  appear  in  the 
form  of  the  future  lover.  Not  a  word  must  be  spoken,  either 
going  or  coming. 

Formerly,  every  farm  over  the  length  and  breadth  of  the  land 
had  its  Hallow-e'en  bonfire,  which  was  often  surrounded  by  a 
circular  trench,  symbolical  of  the  sun. 

These  fires  are  in  many  districts  nearly  burnt  out,  but  it  is  not 
many  years  since  Sheriff  Barclay  says  he  could  count  thirty  fires, 
blazing  on  the  hiU-tops  between  Dunkeld  and  Abergeldy,  and 
could  discern  the  weird  figures  of  the  people  dancing  round  them, 
while  the  faint  echoes  of  their  choruses  gave  a  still  more  unearthly 
feeling  to  the  midnight. 

In  the  neighbourhood  of  Crieffi  also  in  Perthshire,  the  bale-firesy 


ANCIENT  FESTIVALS  OF  THE  SUN.  221 

as  the  people  call  them,  still  blaze  as  brightly  as  ever,  as  we  have 
had  full  opportunity  of  observing  in  the  course  of  long  twilight 
drives,  when  it  seemed  as  if  every  cottage  we  passed  had  its  little 
bonfire  for  the  children;  while  later  in  the  evening,  larger  fires 
were  lighted  by  their  elders,  and  kept  up  till  midnight  We  saw 
groups  of  dark  figures  dancing  round  the  fires ;  the  principal 
refreshment  consisting  of  milk,  thickened  with  oatmeal.  Here,  as 
in  the  northern  counties,  especially  in  Banff  and  Aberdeenshire,  all 
rejoicings  are  deferred  till  the  11th  November;  that  is  Hallow- e'en 
old  style. 

Sometimes,  when  the  bonfire  begins  to  bum  low,  a  circle  of 
stones  is  placed  round  it;  one  to  repre-sent  each  person  present,^ 
Should  any  stone  be  moved  before  morning,  it  is  a  token  of  evil  to 
that  person.  He  is  said  to  be/ey,  and  his  death  within  the  year  is 
considered  probable. 

The  night  of  the  1st  of  November,  Christianized  as  the  Eve  of 
All  Souls,  was  especially  sacred  to  Samhein,  who  merely  repre- 
sented the  sun  in  another  character.  It  was  a  night  for  special 
intercession  by  the  living  'for  the  souls  of  those  who  had  died  in 
the  preceding  year.  For  the  office  of  Samhein  was  to  judge  these 
souls,  and  either  award  them  their  place  of  reward  or  of  punish- 
ment. He  was  also  called  Bal  Sab,  or  the  Lord  of  Death.  At 
this  harvest  festival  he  only  needed  offerings  of  the  fruits  of  the 
earth ;  and  his  name,  Samhein  or  Samtheine,  denotes  peace-fire.  It 
is  probable  that  Saint  Samthena,  whose  day  is  still  marked  in  the 
Bomish  calendar,  was  in  some  way  connected  with  this  festival. 

On  the  25th  December,  when  the  shortest  day  was  past,  the 
great  winter  festival  called  Yule  was  celebrated,  to  mark  the  turn 
of  the  year — ^the  sun's  new  birth.  It  was  a  day  of  solemn  worship 
and  a  night  of  feasting.  Fires  blazed  on  every  hill,  which  were 
rekindled  on  the  twelfth  night  subsequent  to  Yule.  Sacred  plants 
were  cut — more  especially  the  ivy  and  mistletoe. 

^  In  the  modem  monolithic  circles  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Bombay,  it  has 
been  observed  that  the  number  of  stones  differs  in  each  circle,  and  it  is  sup- 
posed that  each  stone  represents  a  family  who  there  sacrifices ;  just  as  the 
twelve  stones  which  Moses  and  Joshua  set  up  on  Mount  Sinai  and  at  Gilgal 
represented  the  Twelve  Tribes. 


222  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

On  Yule  morning,  ofiferings  of  oatmeal  and  of  yarioas  grains 
were  made  to  Hulda,  the  Divine  Mother,  to  induce  her  to  send 
abundant  crops ;  and  the  people  feasted  together.  Hence  the 
bowls  of  furmety  or  sowans,  alias  sour  gruel,  which  in  our  child- 
hood we  always  shared  in  the  early  Christmas  morning.  Hence 
too  the  custom  of  all  the  lads  and  lasses  going  from  farm  to  farm, 
each  carrying  their  own  bowl  and  spoon,  to  share  the  brew  of  each 
gude-wife. 

Probably  it  was  also  in  her  honour  that  those  curious  "Yule 
doughs  "  originated,  still  common  in  the  north  of  England,  where 
many  a  time  we  have  assisted  at  the  manufacture  and  baking  of 
wonderful  dolls,  adorned  with  currants.  Dolls  masculine  and  dolls 
feminine,  to  be  duly  distributed  as  sweethearts  to  every  lad  and 
lass  in  the  house — and  many  such  have  we  received  from  village 
friends. 

From  the  day  answering  to  this  25th  December,  the  ancient 
Hindus  also  reckoned  the  beginning  of  their  new  year,  distinguish- 
ing the  day  as  *'  the  morning  of  the  gods.*'  How  the  seasons  of 
their  year  were  made  to  balance,  is  a  standing  mystery ;  for  we 
know  that,  like  the  Druids  of  the  West,  they  reckoned  by  lonar 
years  of  360  days. 

On  tliis  night  the  Persians  from  time  immemorial  celebrated  the 
birth  of  their  god,  Mithra,  the  sun,  whom  they  also  worshipped 
under  the  name  Tseur,  or  Saviour,  because  of  his  saving  them  from 
the  empire  of  Ahriman,  the  power  of  darkness. 

Amongst  other  games  peculiar  to  this  day,  both  among  Persians 
and  Arabs,  is  one  known  as  the  game  of  the  Beardless  Rider,  when 
men,  hideously  disguised  and  painted,  ride  through  the  city  on 
asses,  playing  all  manner  of  whimsical  pranks,  and  going  from  door 
to  door,  followed  by  an  admiring  multitude,  to  solicit  small  gifts. 
The  custom  answers  precisely  to  that  of  "  guizarding,*'  still  practised 
in  various  parts  of  Scotland,  and  known  in  England  as  mumming 
and  morris  dancing. 

Not  alone  in  Persia  was  this  day  held  in  honour.  In  ancient 
Babylon  it  was  sacred  to  Hhea  and  Nin,  the  latter  being  the  child 
of  the  sun,  bom  of  a  human  mother. 


CHBISTMAS  DAY.  223 

It  is  said  that  in  Etruiia,  Gaul,  and  even  Britain,  a  similar  form 
of  worship  was  observed  on  this  birthnight,  and  that  the  goddess  of 
the  year  was  represented  as  nursing  the  infant  god  of  day. 

When  the  earlier  teachers  of  Christianity  found  themselves 
nnable  to  abolish  times  and  ceremonies  so  widely  observed,  and 
with  so  great  a  hold  on  the  faith  of  the  people,  it  seems  to  have 
been  judged  expedient  to  engraft  the  great  Christian  festival  on 
that  already  established,  without  too  rigid  an  attempt  to  alter 
external  customs. 

There  is  no  doubt  that  this  day  first  began  to  be  observed  as  that 
of  our  Lord's  nativity,  about  the  middle  of  the  fourth  century, 
under  the  Roman  Bishop  Liberius,  and  was  not  adopted  by  the 
Eastern  Church  till  somewhat  later.  St  Chrysostom,  in  preaching 
at  Antioch  a.d.  386,  speaks  of  it  as  having  been  first  observed  in 
that  city  about  ten  years  previously.  Had  the  feast  been  of  certain 
date,  it  would  be  very  strange  that  the  city  in  which  the  disciples 
first  received  the  name  of  Christians,  should  have  been  so  tardy  in 
making  it  a  day  of  annual  rejoicing.  St.  Augustine  also  admits 
that  the  observance  of  this  feast,  now  so  dear  to  every  Christian 
heart,  was  neither  sanctioned  by  any  great  council  nor  derived  from 
apostolic  usaga  In  fact  it  was  never  mentioned  by  any  of  the 
ante-Nicene  Fathers,  even  while  enumerating  the  other  festivals  of 
the  Church. 

It  does  seem  strange,  indeed,  that  the  early  Christians  should 
have  retained  no  definite  tradition  of  the  exact  date  of  the  Nativity. 
Indeed  there  is  the  greatest  possible  doubt  when  any  feast  com- 
memorating it,  was  instituted.  Some  believe  it  to  be  traceable  to 
the  first  century,  but  the  first  certain  information  we  have  respect- 
ing it,  was  its  being  sanctioned  as  a  Church  Festival  by  Pope  Teles- 
phorus  about  A.D.  137.  We  next  hear  of  it  in  the  persecutions 
under  Diocletian,  who  burnt  a  church  full  of  Christians  while  they 
were  celebrating  this  feast. 

But  though  the  observance  of  a  birthday  festival  gradually  spread, 
every  branch  of  the  Christian  Church  selected  whatever  day  seemed 
best  in  its  own  eyes,  and  such  was  the  diversity  of  opinion  on  this 
subject,  that  we  are  told  that  no  less  than  one  hundred  and  thirty-six 


224  IN   THE  HEBRIDES. 

different  days  in  the  year  have  been  fixed  cm  for  Christmas-day 
by  various  Christian  sects  atid  learned  men  ! 

They  have  been  summed  up  as  follows  :  "  The  Egyptian  Chris- 
tians said  the  right  season  was  in  January.  Wagenseil  thought 
February  or  August,  but  inclined  to  the  latter.  Bochart  was  for 
March.  Some,  mentioned  by  Clemens  Alexandrinus,  placed  it  in 
April,  and  others  in  May.  Epiphanius  mentions  two  sects,  one 
fixing  it  in  June,  the  other  in  July.  Lightfoot  says  September 
15th.  Scaliger,  Casaubon,  and  Calvisius  are  for  October.  Several 
others  put  it  in  November.  The  Latin  Church  decided  on  December 
26th,  which  is  the  day  now  universally  recognized  by  Christendom. 
This  was  decreed  by  Pope  Julius  I.  a.d.  337,  and  he  fixed  it  on 
the  same  day  that  the  ancient  Romans  celebrated  the  feast  of  their 
goddess  Bruma,  a  festival  much  observed  by  the  heathen  in  the 
winter  solstice." 

It  would,  however,  appear  as  if  December  could  lay  even  less 
claim  to  this  honour  than  most  of  the  other  months  suggested, 
inasmuch  as  the  rainy  season  in  Judea  being  then  at  its  height,  the 
shepherds  would  probably  betake  them  to  their  homes  rather  than 
watch  all  night  in  the  open  fields.  Nevertheless,  in  the  absence  of 
a  certain  date,  the  selection  of  one  particular  day  was  a  mere  matter 
of  expediency. 

Neander  and  others,  writing  on  this  subject,  observe  that  precisely 
at  this  season  of  the  year,  a  series  of  heathen  festivals  occurred,  so 
closely  interwoven  with  the  whole  civil  and  social  life,  that  it  was 
impossible  to  wean  the  people  from  them.  First  came  the  Satur- 
nalia, the  maddest,  merriest  day  of  the  year.  Then  the  custom  of 
making  presents  (the  Strenae),  followed  by  the  festival  of  infants^ 
when  the  little  ones  received  gifts  of  images.  Next  the  birthday 
of  the  New  Sun.  Therefore  it  was  advisable  to  draw  the  Christians 
away  from  sharing  in  the  revelries  of  their  Pagan  neighbours,  by  sub- 
stituting some  legitimate  cause  of  rejoicing,  and  what  more  natural 
than  the  birth  of  Christ,  the  Spiritual  Sun  appearing  to  dispel  the 
powers  of  darkness  and  to  be  Himself  the  Light  of  the  world  1 

A  feast  so  reasonable  found  ready  acceptance,  though  it  was  long 
ere  the  churches  agreed  on  which  day  it  should  be  celebrated ;  thoso 


CHRISTIAN   versus  PAGAN  FESTIVALS.  225 

of  the  East  still  preferring  to  observe  it  on  the  6th  January,  which 
had  there  already  been  adopted  as  the  Feast  of  the  Epiphany.  It 
was  not  till  the  sixth  century  -that  anything  like  unanimity  pre- 
vailed on  the  subject,  between  the  Eastern  and  Western  Churches, 
and  that  all  acknowledged  the  wisdom  of  substituting  a  series  of 
Christian  feast-days,  for  those  heathen  merry-makings  which  the 
con  verts  were  called  on  to  abjure. 

Nevertheless  the  universal  feasting  was  still  liable  to  abuse,  and 
too  often  degenerated  into  mere  revelry  and  drunkenness  ;  puppet 
shows  and  miracle  plays  were  devised  to  replace  the  idol  worship 
of  the  temples,  and  pagan  superstition  and  excess  still  continued  to 
reign  under  a  new  and  more  sacred  name. 

Yule  having  thus  been  deposed  in  favour  of  Christmasy  it  followed 
as  a  matter  of  course,  that  the  Midimmmer  Festival,  just  six  months 
earlier^  must  represent  the  nativity  of  St  John  the  Baptist,  Thus 
two  of  the  principal  Pagan  festivals  were  at  once  utilized,  and  the 
bonfires,  the  excbange  of  gifts,  the  cutting  of  evergreens,  and  the 
feasting,  were  endowed  with  new  meaning,  and  so.contmue  to  this 
day ;  though  the  wild  rejoicings  of  Tule  have  resolved  themselves 
into  more  sober  Christmas  mirth. 

The  mistletoe  of  the  Druids,  and  the  Tule-log  which  once  blazed 
in  honour  of  Odin  and  Thor,  still  hold  their  honoured  place,  and 
until  very  recent  times,  the  charred  remains  of  tlie  log  of  one  yexir 
were  preserved  carefuUy  until  the  following  Yule,  when  they  served 
to  light  the  new  log ;  their  presence  in  the  house  being  a  safeguard 
against  fire.  A  monstrous  candle  called  the  Yule  candle  was  also 
lighted,  and  was  expected  to  bum  for  twelve  nights. 

There  is  a  further  division  of  the  winter  festivals,  by  the  partial 
adoption  of  New  Style  in  reckoning.  Thus  just  9a  one  half  of  the 
people  keep  Hallow-e'en  on  the  last  night  of  October,  and  the  others 
observe  the  11th  of  November,  so  with  the  New  Year.  This  is 
especially  remarkable  on  the  Inverness  and  Koss-shire  coasts,  which 
face  one  another,  on  either  side  of  the  Beauly  Firth.  Long  before 
sunrise  on  the  first  of  January,  the  Inverness  hills  are  crowned  with 
bonfires,  and  when  they  burn  low,  the  lads  and  lassies  dance  round 
them,  and  trample  out  the  dying  embers.     The  opposite  coast  shows 


i2&  IN   THE  HEBRIDES. 

no  such  fir68  till  the  morning  of  the  New  Year,  Old  Style,  when  it 
likevYise  awakens  before  daybreak  to  greet  the  rising  sun. 

One  very  curious  old  custom  is  still  observed  in  our  good  town 
of  Burghead  (on  the  Moray  Firth).  It  is  called  The  Burning  of 
the  CLivie.  Its  meaning  and  its  origin  are  alike  unknown — but 
from  time  immemorial  the  fisher  folk  and  seamen  have,  on  this  Yule 
night,  reckoned  according  fa  Old  Style,  assembled  at  the  west  side  of 
the  town,  carrying  an  old  tar-barrel  and  other  combustible  materials. 
.  This  barrel  being  siwn  in  two,  the  lower  half  is  nailed  into  a  long 
spoke  of  firewood,  which  acts  as  a  handle.  This  nail  mmt  not  he 
struck  by  a  hammer ^  but  Is  driven  in  with  a  stone. 

The  half -barrel  is  next  filled  with  dry  wood,  saturated  with  tar, 
and  built  up  like  a  pyramid,  leaving  only  a  hollow  to  receive  a 
burning  peat,  for  no  modem*  lucifer  match  may  be  applied,  and  a 
final  libation  of  tat  completes  the  Clavie,  which  is  shouldered  by 
one  of  the  lads,  quite  regardless  of  the  streams  of  boiling  tar  which 
of  course  trickle  all  down  his  back  ;  should  he  stumble  or  fall,  the 
omen  would  be  held  unlucky  indeed,  both  to  the  town  and  to 
himself.  When  weary  of  his  burden,  a  second  is  ready  to  fill  the 
honoured  post,  and  then  a  third  and  a  fourth,  till  the  Clavie  has 
made  the  circuit  of  the  town,  when  it  is  carried  to  a  hillock,  called 
the  Doorie,  where  a  hollowed  stone  receives  the  fir  spoke.  Fresh 
fuel  is  added,  and  in  olden  days,  the  blaze  continued  all  night,  and 
at  last  was  allowed  to  bum  itself  put  untouched. 

Now,  after  a  short  interval,  the  Clavie  is  thrown  down  the 
Western  side  of  the  hill,  and  a  desperate  scramble  ensues  for  the 
burning  brands,  the  possession  of  which  is  accounted  to  bring  good 
luck,  and  the  embers  are  carried  home,  and  carefully  presejued  till 
the  following  year,  as  a  safeguard  against  all  manner  of  evil.  In 
bygone  times  it  was  thought  necessary  that  one  man  should  carry 
it  right  round  the  town,  so  the  strongest  was  selected  to  bear  this 
weighty  honour. 

Moreover,  it  was  customary  to  carry  the  Clavie  round  every  ship 
in  the  harbour,  a  part  of  the  ceremony  which  has  latterly  been 
discontinued.  Occasionally,  however,  the  Clavie  is  still  rowed  round 
some  favoured  vessel 


FXRE-BITES.  227 

The  modem  part  of  the  town  is  not  included  in  the  circuit,  only 
the  old  town  is  thus  encompassed  hy  a  protecting  wall  of  fire. 
Kound  this  town  of  Burghead  are  certain  green  hillocks  known  as 
the  Bailiea  Douhtless  they  also  hear  witness  to  the  hale-fires  which 
once  crowned  theuL 

The  only  other  place  where  I  can  hear  of  any  custom  akin  to 
this  huming  of  the  Clavie  is  at  Logierait,  in  Perthshire,  where 
certainly  till  late  years  (prohahly  even  to  this  day)  the  young  men 
assemhled  on  Hallow-e'en,  and  made  great  torches  of  faggots,  hy 
binding  hroom,  flax,  and  heather  on  a  pole.  This  being  kindled, 
is,  or  was,  carried  on  the  shoulders  of  a  strong  lad,  who  runs  round 
the  village,  followed  by  all  the  crowd ;  and  as  fast  as  one  faggot 
bums  out,  a  second  is  kindled.  Sometimes  several  are  lighted 
simultaneously. 

Pennant  describes  the  same  ceremony  as  one  of  the  regular  insti- 
tutions of  Hallow-e'en  a  hundred  years  ago,  and  says  that  when  the 
faggot  had  been  thus  carried  round  the  village,  its  embers  were 
used  to  kindle  a  great  bonfire.  This  custom,  says  Borlase,  was 
forbidden  by  the  Gallic  Councils,  and  all  concerned  were  held  to 
be  as  guilty  as  though  they  had  actually  sacrificed  to  devils. 

Of  course,  though  the  old  customs  are  still  retained,  their  original 
meaning  is  utterly  forgotten  ;  and  the  man  who  throws  a  live  peat 
after  a  woman  who  is  about  to  increase  the  population,  or  he  who 
on  Hallow-e'en  throws  a  lighted  brand  over  his  own  shoulder  with- 
out looking  at  whom  he  aims,  little  dreams  whence  sprang  these 
time-honoured  games. 

One  remarkable  practice  which,  till  very  recently,  existed  in 
Lewis  and  other  Isles,  was  that  of  carrying  fire  all  round  the  houses 
and  goods  of  different  members  of  the  community,  more  especially 
round  women  after  the  birth  of  children,  and  round  infants  till 
after  their  baptism,  to  protect  them  from  evil  spirits. 

In  like  manner  no  Shetlander  will  venture  after  nightfall  to  pasd 
the  gpreen  hillocks  haunted  by  elfin  tribes,  unless  he  carries  with 
him  a  live  coal. 

To  look  much  nearer  home,  we  know  of  one  good  old  wife  living 
in  Banfishiie,  who  carries  a  live  peat  sunwise  round  her  cottage 

Q  2 


228  IN  THE  HEBRIDES, 

every  night,  just  as  regolarly  as  she  says  her  prayers.  Moreover 
she  is  most  particular  about  keeping  a  red  thread  twisted  round  her 
cow's  tail,  as  otherwise  she  is  convinced  that  the  milk  would  pass 
from  her  cow  to  her  neighbour's.  Also  if  it  is  sick,  she  at  once 
kindles  the  old  Need-fire. 

I  know  that  in  many  of  the  remote  glens  of  Perthshire  there  are 
still  living  women  who  on  Beltane  mom  always  throw  ashes  and  a 
live  peat  over  their  own  heads,  repeating  a  certain  formula  of  words 
to  bring  them  luck.  But  the  strictest  secrecy  is  observed,  lest  such 
practices  should  reach  the  ear  of  the  minister :  so  the  stronger  their 
belief,  the  lees  willing  are  they  to  confess  to  any  knowledge  of  such 
matters. 

Such  quaint  old  superstitions  are  common  in  every  comer  of 
England  and  Scotland,  though  rarely  noticed  save  when  they  lead 
to  some  mischief  which  brings  them  within  ken  of  the  law. 

Thus  at  Craigmillar,  near  Edinburgh,  a  woman,  not  long  ago, 
refused  to  give  a  neighbour  *'  a  bit  peat "  to  light  her  fire,  because 
she  was  supposed  to  be  uncanny.  The  old  woman  muttered,  as  she 
turned  away,  that  her  churlish  neighbour  might  yet  repent  of  her 
unkind ness.  This  speech  the  other  repeated  to  her  husband  on  his 
return  from  work,  whereupon  he  went  straight  to  the  old  woman's 
house,  and  gave  her  a  sharp  cut  on  the  forehead,  for  which  he  was 
duly  called  to  account,  and  pleaded  his  belief  that  scoring  the 
witch  above  the  breath  would  destroy  her  glamour !  This,  it  seems, 
is  a  common  article  of  faith. 

Some  very  curious  notions  as  to  this  non-^ving  of  fire  exist  in 
some  Highland  districts.  In  various  districts  of  Perthshire,  in  Roes- 
shire,  and  in  Strathspey,  I  have  found  instances  of  it.  At  Beltane, 
Midsummer,  Hallow-e'en,  and  particularly  at  the  New  Year,  and  on 
some  intervening  days,  there  is  a  dread  of  ill  luck  in  allowing  a 
neighbour  to  take  a  kindling  from  the  hearth,  or  even  a  light  for  a 
pipe.  An  old  servant  from  the  island  of  Islay  tells  me  that  there 
no  one  would,  on  any  account,  give  or  take  a  light  at  Hogmanay, 
that  is,  at  the  new  year. 

A  schoolmaster,  in  Boss-shire,  also  gave  me  various  proofs  of 
this  superstition  which  had  come  under  his  immediate  notice.     For 


DANGER  OF  GIVINa  A  KINDLING.  229 

instance,  an  old  wife  came  to  a  neighbour's  house  to  get  '^  a  kin- 
dling "  for  her  fire.  There  was  no  one  in  the  house  but  a  wide- 
awake lassie  eight  years  old.  So  well  versed  was  the  child  in  this 
fire  lore,  that  she  would  neither  give  a  match  nor  a  cinder.  Hay- 
ing turned  out  the  poor  old  body,  the  little  girl  immediately  went 
to  fetch  two  friends,  and  they  followed  the  old  woman  to  her  homo, 
where,  sure  enough,  they  found  a  blazing  fire  and  a  boiling  pot. 
"  See  you,''  said  the  lassie,  **  gin  the  caiUiach  had  gotten  the  kin- 
dling, my  father  would  not  get  a  herring  this  year !  ^ 

In  like  manner  a  poor  tinker's  wife  came  into  a  house  in  Apple- 
cross,  Boss-shire,  one  morning  in  July,  1868,  and  took  up  a  live 
peat  from  the  hearth  to  kindle  her  own  fire.  She  had  got  to  some 
distance  before  she  was  observed,  whereupon  the  gude-wife  rushed 
after  her,  and,  snatching  away  the  poor  gipsy's  prize,  turned  to  a 
etranger  who  ventured  to  remonstrate,  saying,  '*  Do  you  think  I 
am  to  allow  my  cow  to  be  dried  up  t  If  I  allowed  her  to  carry 
away  the  fire,  I  would  not  have  a  drop  of  milk  to-night  to  wet  the 
bairns'  mouths."  She  then  threw  the  peat  into  a  pail  of  water,  so 
as  to  recover  whatever  milk  might  already  have  found  its  way  from 
poor  crummie  to  the  tinker's  camp. 

Generally,  when  a  kindling  has  thus  been  taken  by  stealth,  it  is 
considered  safer  to  consult  a  wise  woman  (or,  as  they  call  her,  a 
disciple  of  Black  Donald),  that  she  may  put  a  counter-check  on  the 
evil  designs  of  the  unneighbourly  neighbour. 

We  find  allusions  to  this  quaint  superstition  in  divers  legends  of 
old,  as  for  instance  in  those  that  tell  of  the  mighty  brothers  Akin 
and  Khea,  prehistoric  giants,  who  dwelt  on  the  mainland,  and 
occasionally  crossed  over  to  the  Isle  of  Skye  by  leaping  the  Straits. 
The  brothers  built  two  strong  towers  in  the  Glenelg  country,  where 
they  lived  in  fraternal  harmony,  till  on  one  evil  day  the  younger 
brother,  returning  to  his  home,  found  only  a  black  hearth  to  greet 
him.  Weary  and  chill,  he  passed  on  to  his  brother's  castle,  where 
the  fire  was  smouldering  as  usual  Soon  he  kindled  a  cheery  blaze^ 
and  having  warmed  himself,  prepared  to  return  to  his  own  lair, 
taking  with  him,  however,  a  burning  peai  for  a  kindling.  At  this 
moment  the  loving  elder  brother  returned  from  the  chase^  and  great 


230  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

was  his  wrath  on  perceiving  the  theft !  The  culprit  made  off  with 
all  speed,  as  well  he  might,  for  to  this  day  the  valley  is  strewn 
with  rocks  hurled  after  him  hy  the  infuriated  giant ;  one  mighty 
houlder  in  particular  stands  forth  as  a  warning  to  all  men  to  respect 
the  rights  of  Fire. 

This  curious  fear  of  ill-luck  connected  with  the  giving  or  stealing 
of  fire  is  evidently  a  survival  of  Druidic  customs — of  those  solemn 
Fire-Festivals,  on  the  eve  of  which  the  fires  which  usually  smoul- 
dered day  and  night  on  the  hearth  were  purposely  extinguished, 
that  on  the  Great  Day  of  the  Festival,  when  ihe  priests  had  hy 
friction  kindled  new  sacred  fire,  each  household  might  provide  itself 
with  a  kindling  from  the  altar,  and  so  sanctify  its  own  hearth 
afresh. 

As  the  purchase  of  this  fire  was  a  source  of  profit  to  the  priests, 
it  woidd  Tuiturally  he  considered  criminal  for  one  neighbour  to  gioe 
it  to  another  at  the  seasons  when  every  man  was  hound  to  purchase 
it  for  himself.  Terhhle  penalties  were  in  store  for  any  rash  person 
who  dared  to  kindle  a  flame  from  any  other  source.  This  sacred 
fire  was  fed  with  the  peeled  wood  of  a  certain  tree,  and  must  never 
he  hlown  with  the  hreath,  lest  it  should  he  polluted. 

Precisely  similar  is  the  custom  which  prevails  among  the  Guehres 
and  Parsees  of  the  present  day.  All  fires  heing  allowed  to  die  out, 
each  family  must  procure  sacred  fire  from  the  temples,  wherewith 
to  rekindle  the  domestic  hearth.  In  the  Talmud  it  is  stated  that 
the  Israelites  who  were  captives  in  Persia  adopted  this  practice. 

A  very  interesting  survival  of  this  old  custom  is  still  practised 
on  the  Midsummer  Festival  (the  Eve  of  St.  John)  in  the  Spanish 
Pyrenees,  at  Luchon  and  other  places,  where  the  ancient  hale-fires 
— Christianized  as  The  Fires  of  St.  John — are  kindled  hy  the 
priests,  while  chanting  sacred  hymns ;  and  when  these  sacred  fires 
have  burnt  themselves  out,  the  charred  wood  is  distributed  among 
the  people^  so  that  evei^y  household  may  have  a  poriiony  which  is 
religiously  preserved  throughout  the  year.^ 

^  Some  interesting  particulars  of  this  quaint  custom  were  given  in  the 
'Saturday  Review,'  July  15th>  1882.  "At  B^n^res  de  Bigorre,  Midsummer 
Eve  is  still  kept  in  half  pagan- wise.    A  mighty  funeral  pile  of  logs  and  faggots. 


SUUVIYALS  OF  ANCIENT  RITES.  231 

Lamartine  allades  to  tlie  ceremonies  of  this  night  ad  now  practised 
in  the  French  Alps.  He  tells  how  the  peasants  have  processions, 
and  carry  lighted  torches  of  pine-wood  and  straw.  Should  they 
wish  especial  lack  to  any  young  couple,  they  march  round  them  in 
a  circle,  just  as  the  islanders  of  the  West  used  to  da 

In  the  Yosges  tlie  May-day  festival  is  adjourned  till  the  first 
Sunday  in  Lent,  when  immediately  after  vespers,  the  lads  and  lassies 
form  two  separate  chains,  and  having  thrice  circled  sunwise  round 
the  village  green,  they  pair  off  all  present,  one  couple  at  a  time, 
circling  three  times  round  each  couple.  Then,  on  a  given  signal, 
each  girl  receives  a  torch  hrought  from  the  church,  and  the  wliole 
company  go  up  to  set  fire  to  a  pile  of  wood  in  the  middle  of  the 
green.  As  it  hlazes  up  they  resume  their  whirling  dance,  and 
when  the  bonfire  is  nearly  extinct,  each  couple  joins  in  the  scramble 
for  a  brand,  and  those  who  succeed  in  getting  one,  carry  it  off  in 
triumph  to  the  home  of  the  young  woman. 

These  Fire-Festivals  seem  to  have  been  celebrated  in  much  the 
fiame  manner  all  over  Europe,  for  there  seems  to  be  literally  no 
comer  where  we  do  not  find  some  of  the  old  ceremonies  still 
practised ;  nowhere  more  notably  than  on  the  shores  of  the  Baltic 
— in  Prussia,  Lithuania,  and  the  lands  adjacent.  Indeed  the  name 
of  the  Baltic,  and  of  many  Scandinavian  places,  still  point  to  the 
old  worship. 

But  with  equal  right  may  we  seek  traces  of  the  old  Paganism  on 

with  a  tail  fir-tree  standing  erect  in  its  midst,  is  prepared  in  every  village 
through  the  mountains.  As  the  twilight  darkens  on  St.  John's  Eve,  the 
Cur§,  arrayed  in  all  his  robes,  issues  from  the  church,  followed  by  all  his 
satellites  chanting  lustily.  The  pile  is  blessed  with  much  burning  of  incense, 
and  sprinkling  with  holy  water,  to  scare  off  the  evil  spirits.  As  the  pile 
blazes  up,  the  crowd  with  one  consent  precipitates  itself  on  the  bonfire,  and 
tears  it  to  pieces.  Blazing  brands  are,  sent  flying  in  all  directions.  Every 
one  is  so  eager  to  procure  a  piece  of  charred  stick  to  act  as  a  charm  against 
injury  by  lightning  during  the  ensuing  year,  that  he  has  no  thought  for  the 
danger  of  being  burnt  or  trodden  to  death  in  the  bustle.  Lighted  by  the  lurid 
glare  of  the  blazins;  tree,  the  scene  is  one  not  soon  to  be  forgotten,  and  adds 
one  more  to  the  many  pleasant  memories  that  the  visitor  to  Bagndres  cannot 
foil  to  carry  away  with  him." 


232  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

the  shores  of  Armorica — inasmuch  as  both  in  Brittany,  and  mora 
especially  in .  Finisterre,  the  people  clung  to  their  ancient  worship 
with  such  tenacity,  that  beyond  the  mere  fact  of  baptism,  they 
could  hardly,  two  hundred  years  ago,  be  called  Christians  at  all ; 
but  continued  to  worship,  as  their  fathers  had  done  before  them, 
amid  the  huge  ghostly  temples  which  still  abound  in  all  that  dis- 
trict. So  we  hear  of  zealous  priests  going  forth  in  the  seventeenth 
century  as  Missionaries  to  preach  Christianity  to  the  people  of 
Finisterre,  as  almost  a  new  faith.  Even  then  Church  Councils 
vainly  strove  to  stop  the  pilgrimages  to  these  Druidic  circles. 

At  the  present  day  they  blend,  with  picturesque  effect,  in  various 
scenes  of  peasant  life.  Thus,  on  Midsummer's-eve,  all  the  lads  and 
lasses  in  Brittany  assemble  at  divers  groups  of  old  weather-beaten 
stones.  The  lads  wear  green  com,  the  girls  a  bunch  of  flax,  with 
blue  blossoms.  They  lay  their  com  and  flax  on  the  great  grey 
stones,  and  dance  round  them  till  sunset.  Then,  according  as  they 
find  their  flowers  fresh  or  withered,  they  read  the  fate  of  their  love ; 
and  return  home,  each  lad  leading  his  lass  by  one  finger.  As  the 
darkness  closes  in,  bonfires  are  lighted  on  every  hilUtop,  lighting 
up  all  the  land  with  their  red  glow,  and  the  young  people  dance 
wildly  round  them,  hurrying  from  one  bonfire  to  the  next ;  for  all 
manner  of  luck  in  love  and  life  attends  those  who  have  danoed 
round  nine  fires  before  midnight 

In  Sardinia,  on  this  night,  the  people  light  great  bonfires  in  their 
villages  and  at  every  cross-road.  Men  make  compacts  one  with 
another  by  passing  their  hands  three  times  through  the  flames 
while  grasping  a  stick.  They  also  cause  their  children  to  leap 
through  the  flames^  Then  they  go  in  procession  to  a  church,  near 
which  they  sit  in  a  circle,  and  feast  on  eggs  fried  with  divers  herb& 

Not  only  in  country  districts,  and  by  simple  peasants,  were  these 
festivals  observed  till  recent  days,  but  in  all  the  principal  con- 
tinental towns,  such  as  Paris  and  Motz,  where  it  was  customary  to 
kindle  fires  in  the  market-place.  Those  were  sometimes  blessed  by 
the  parish  priest,  who  offered  a  prayer  in  the  name  of  St  John — 
thus  adapting  the  old  heathen  festival  to  Christian  use.  The 
young  people  then  leaped  over  the  flames,  and  threw  flowers  and 


MAYPOLES.  233 

garLinds  into  tbem,  singing,  shouting,  and  dancing  merrily.     Even 
the  great  folk  sometimes  joined  in  the  old  games. 

But  imagine  that  only  fifty  years  ago  the  Spring  Festival  received 
municipal  honours  ia  Edinburgh,  where,  on  the  first  Sunday  after 
Beltane,  the  magistrates  used  to  walk  down  the  Canongate  in 
procession,  decorated  with  flowers,  and  carrying  large  nosegays! 
Imagine  the  feelings  of  these  grave  men,  if  it  had  occurred  to  them 
that  they  were  rejoicing  over  Bel's  new  birth  I 

Still  more  extraordinary  does  it  seem  to  us,  who  know  Comhill 
only  as  a  centre  of  London's  busiest  business  life,  to  hear  of  days 
when  the  streets  were  crowded  with  merry-makers,  and  gaily- 
dressed  maidens  and  smart  'prentices  danced  and  frolicked,  while 
the  gigantic  Maypole,  adorned  with  flags  and  streamers,  was 
dragged  by  forty  oxen,  all  decked  with  flowers,  through  Comhill  to 
the  Church  of  St  Andrew,  Undershaft :  so  named  because  of  the 
huge  Maypole  or  shaft,  far  overtopping  the  church,  which  from 
time  immemorial  had  been  there  erected.  Kear  this  Maypole  were 
erected  summer-halls,  bowers,  and  arbours ;  and  feasting  and  danc- 
ing went  on  all  day,  till  evening  drew  on,  when  great  bonfires  were 
lighted. 

Another  celebrated  London  Maypole  stood  in  the  Strand,  at  the 
entrance  of  a  street  formerly  known  as  Little  Drury  Lane,  but 
which  after  the  days  of  Cromwell  was  renamed  Maypole  Alley.  It 
was  a  stately  mast  of  cedar- wood,  134  feet  long,  prepared  in  the 
London  docks,  and  carried  to  the  Strand  by  a  detachment  of 
sailors,  with  bands  playing  and  colours  flying,  amid  the  rejoicings 
of  the  people. 

When  grave  citizens  ceased  to  care  for  such  frivolities,  Sir  Isaac 
Kewton  purchased  the  spar,  and  conveyed  it  to  Wanstead  iu  Essex 
to  support  a  great  telescope ;  and  thus  the  poor  old  Maypole  was 
forced  to  lend  its  aid  to  solemn'  science  after  all,  a  new  phase  of 
homage  done  to  the  host  of  heaven ! 

Comparatively  few  traces  now  remain  in  these  isles  of  the 
worship  of  the  moon  goddess. 

Some  lingering  notion  of  her  influence  doubtless  inspired  the 
extreme  reverence  with  which  the  Highlanders  and  Islanders  have 


234  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

always  noted  all  changes  of  the  moon.  So  late  as  the  year  1700, 
the  latter  invariably  selected  the  time  of  the  moon's  increase  for 
cuttiag  their  peat  and  rushes,  building  their  earthen  dykes  and  fell- 
infj  timffer  (hence  we  assume  they  had  some  trees  then !),  asserting 
that  all  manner  of  evils  would  attend  their  labour,  should  these 
things  be  done  at  the  time  of  her  decrease.  As  to  the  timber,  they 
certainly  have  left  little  for  their  descendants  !  A  birth  or  a 
marriage  at  the  time  of  the  full  moon  was  accounted  lucky; 
whereas  to  marry,  or  to  kill  a  beast  for  food,  while  tlie  moon  was 
waning,  would  have  been  the  height  of  folly.  In  fact,  no  import- 
ant business  was  commenced  at  the  wane. 

Even  in  England  there  are  still  some  remote  comers,  such  as 
Dartmoor,  where  it  is  considered  very  dangerous  to  cut  children's 
hair  in  March,  at  certain  phases  of  the  moon. 

Certainly  it  is  curious  to  trace  back  some  of  these  simple  customs 
to  their  origin.  How  little  we  think,  as  we  kiss  our  hands  to  the 
young  moon,  that  more  than  three  thousand  years  ago,  Job,  the 
grand  old  Arabian  patriarch,  spoke  of  this  very  action  as  of  a  sin 
to  be  punished  :  a  denial  of  the  Creator !  ^ 

There  seems  always  to  have  been  some  difficulty  in  determining 
under  what  sex  to  adore  the  host  of  Heaven.  The  feminine  Sun, 
and  Moon  masculine,  of  the  Germans  certainly  sound  incongruous 
in  our  ears.  In  Northern  India,  also,  as  with  the  old  Scandi- 
navians, the  moon  is  worshipped  as  a  male  divinity,  under  the 
name  of  Chandra  (silvery),  at  whose  great  festivals  all  devout 
Hindus  appear  in  white  raiment,  with  silver  ornaments.  They  sit 
on  white  cloths,  and  make  offerings  of  milk  and  white  sugar. 

The  moon  found  more  favour  with  the  women  than  the  men, 
and  while  we  hear  of  the  old  Highlanders  taking  off  their  bonnet 
to  the  rising  sun,  the  women  reserved  their  homage  for  the  new 
moon.  Any  lassie  who  desired  to  invoke  her  protection,  and  crave 
her  gooil  influence  in  her  sweethearting,  had  to  go  out  at  night  and 
watch  for  the  first  new  moon  of  the  new  year.  Then  kneeling  on  a 
*'  yerd-fast  stane  "  (that  is,  one  fixed  immovably  in  the  earth  like  the 
Druid  altars),  she  was  to  lean  her  back  against  a  tree,  and  thus  wait 

»  Job  xxxi.  26-28. 


AN  owl's  question.  235 

for  the  moment  when  she  might  hail  the  pale  crescent  as  it  rose 
above  the  horizon.  Bitterly  cold  work  this  must  have  been,  on  a 
chilly  night  in  January,  but  with  such  an  object  in  view,  what 
mattered  the  freezing  blast  ? 

How  often  we  have  laughed  at  the  story  of  the  lassie  who  thus 
went  out  to  invoke  the  lady-moon,  and  pray  that  she  would 
speedily  send  her  a  faithful  swain.  Kow  in  the  ivy  behind  her 
sat  a  great  white  owl,  whose  eyes  winked  and  blinked  and  twinkled 
as  he  said  "  Who-ooooo  1 "  "  Oh  !  "  cried  the  lassie,  "  I  dinna 
mind  who.  Just  anybody  !  "  Thereupon  she  returned  home  in  all 
faith,  and  having  found,  a  suitable  love,  Sent  all  her  friends  and 
companions  forth  on  a  similar  errand. 


236  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

FOOTPRINTS   OF   THE  PAST. 

Lonely  Chapels — Blended  Futha— Sunwise  Tarns— East  and  West  Divination 
by  Smoke — Touch  of  a  Seventh  Son — The  Royal  Touch,  a  Cure  for 
Scrofula—Burial  of  a  Living  Cock  for  Epilepsy— Legends  of  Isle  Raasay — 
Of  Wild  Deer— Of  buying  a  Gale— Witchcraft— Drawing  the  Tether-A 
Milk  Charm  from  the  Isle  of  Uist— Ancient  and  Modem  Witches— The 
Evil  Eye— Making  Images  to  injure  a  Neighbour — ^Cats — Belief  in 
Transmigration— The  Luck  of  leaving  a  House  unswept — Ill-Luck  of 
succeeding  an  Ejected  Tenant 

Among  the  numerous  interesting  small  isles  lying  off  the  large 
Isle  of  SkySy  the  group  called  the  Shiaut  Isles  is  worthy  of  note. 
They  rise  to  a  height  of  about  500  feet,  presenting  to  the  waves 
a  precipitous  face  of  columnar  basalt,  much  less  regular  than  that 
of  Staifa.  In  some  places,  where  the  pillars  have  fallen,  the  rock 
to  which  they  were  attached  has  a  smooth  surface,  as  if  the 
columnar  form  were  merely  superficial  The  pulhn  and  the 
guillemot,  and  myriads  of  sea-fowl  of  every  description,  here  make 
their  homes,  and  hold  undisputed  possession  of  the  site  of  a  ruined 
Chapel,  around  which  some  ascetics  of  olden  days  made  their  lowly 
cells.  One  of  the  islands  has  good  pasturage,  and  I  believe  a 
shepherd  generally  Kves  on  the  spot 

Yery  similar  is  the  Isle  of  Flodigarry,  also  called  Eilean  Alteveg, 
whose  pillars  are  unusually  large,  but  the  lower  part  is  generally 
divided  into  sections,  like  a  heap  of  gigantic  millstones.     Hera 


LONELY  CHAPELS.  237 

formerly  stood  a  chapel  sacred  to  St.  Tares,  but  oi  its  rains  we  sav 
.DO  trace.  All  these  islands  and  headlands  have  the  same  very 
striking  form — namely,  a  long  sloping  face  of  smooth  grass  to  the 
west,  and  a  precipitoas  face  eastward.  Their  position  with  regard 
to  the  points  of  the  compass  varies,  however,  at  different  parts  of 
the  coast. 


In  very  early  days,  these  islandere  were  thought  worthy  of  more 
Kpiritual  tare  than  falls  to  their  lot  now-a-days.  There  is  hardly 
one  island  on  which  some  devoted  Christian  did  not  make  his  cell 
and  build  his  chapeL  The  more  remote  the  island,  the  better  it 
was  cared  for. 

St.  Eilda  owns  several  such  sites,  to  which  indeed  it  seems  to 


238  IJN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

owe  its  name.  St.  Bonan's  oratory ;  still  remains  oh.  Isle  Kona ; 
but  in  most  cases  the  ruins  have  disappeared,  and  only  the  name 
of  some  saint,  perhaps  with  the  prefix  of  Kil,  to  mark  his  cell, 
tells  that  here  once  was  holy  ground,  the  place  where  prayer  was 
wont  to  be  made. 

Here  and  there  we  find  some  little  islet  bearing  only  the  name  of 
Pabba,  which  is  a  corruption  of  Papa,  or  Father,  the  title  whereby 
these  ancborite  fathers  were  addressed  in  the  Norse  tongue.  One 
such  isle  lies  off  Skye,  another  off  Harris,  a  third  oflF  Barra.  We 
find  Pappadil  in  Rum,  and  divere  isles  off  Orkney  and  Shetland 
are  known  as  Papa,  the  Father's  Isle,  telling  their  own  history  of 
those  early  servants  of  the  Cross.  Some,  indeed,  say  that  these 
Ouldees  were  merely  hermits  (Cuil-dich,  men  of  seclusion),  who 
sought  these  desolate  "  clippings  of  the  earth  "  as  the  loneliest  spots 
in  which  they  could  hide  from  their  species.  Be  that  as  it  may, 
there  can  be  no  doubt  that  they  did  devote  themselves  to  teaching 
the  people,  and  in  some  measure  succeeded  in  instilling  a  very  grey, 
clouded  sort  of  light. 

For  the  result  of  their  labours  was  much  like  what  has  been 
recorded  of  that  of  the  priest  of  Samaria,  who  was  brought  to  Bethel 
to  teach  the  nations  how  they  should  fear  the  Lord.  Their  pupils 
took  so  kindly  to  both  faiths,  that  we  are  told  "  they  feared  the 
Lord  aiid  served  their  own  gods,  their  graven  images,  their  children, 
and  tlieir  children's  children." 

There  was  as  strange  a  blending  of  faith  as  of  race  when  these 
wild  Norsemen  and  Celts  first  began  to  amalgamate.  The  new 
Christian  faith  retained  so  many  of  the  practices  of  old  Paganism, 
that  at  times  it  was  hard  to  tell  which  claimed  the  upjier  hand ; 
and  the  people  are  described  as  having  generally  been  *'  Christians, 
in  time  of  peace,  but  always  certain  to  invoke  the  aid  of  Thor, 
when  sailing  on  any  dangerous  expedition." 

At  a  later  date  .they  used  to  induce  the  priests  to  sprinkle  the 
sea  with  holy  water,  as  an  infallible  means  of  procuring  plenty  of 
herring  !  and,  at  least  until  the  year  1660,  the  custom  prevailed  on 
Hallow-e'en  of  wading  into  the  i^ea,  with  a  cup  of  ale,  which  was 
poured  out  as  a  libation  to  Shony,  a  sea-god,  who  was  implored  to 


"hedging."  239 

send  abundant  sea-ware  for  the  good  of  the  land.  After  this  the 
people  adjourned  to  the  church,  and  from  the  church  to  the  fields 
— to  spend  the  night  in  feasting  and  dancing. 

Of  course  the  sea-going  folk  were  sure  to  retain  their  old  super- 
stitions to  the  last,  and  it  reads  curiously  in  an  account  of  the 
launch  of  Clan  Ronald's  galley,  as  sung  by  an  old  Celtic  bard,  to 
find,  first  a  fervent  prayer  to  the  Holy  Trinity  for  the  safety  of  the 
ship ;  and  that  "He  Who  knows  every  harbour  under  the  sun  may 
render  the  breath  of  the  sky  propitious,  and  urge  the  vessel  over 
the  waters,  uninjured,  to  a  safe  haven ;  "  and  then  to  find  that,  to 
make  assurance  doubly  sure,  a  he-goat  had  been  suspended  from  the 
mastf  to  secure  a  favourable  wind  I  This  double  precaution  seems 
to  liave  failed  in  its  object,  for  soon  after  leaving  South  Uist,  a 
terrible  storm  arose,  and  the  bard  tells  how  "  the  awful  world  of 
waters  drew  on  its  rough  mantle  of  thick  darkness,  swelling  into 
mountains,  and  sinking  into  glens,''  and  how  the  tall  masts  of  good 
red  pine  were  shivered  by  the  tempest.  Not  till  they  reached  the 
Strait  of  Isla  did  Ocean  make  peace  with  these  marinei-s,  '*  and  dis- 
missed this  host  of  winds  to  the  upper  regions  of  the  air,  leaving 
the  waters  smooth  as  a  polished  mirror." 

The  unhappy  goat  which  thus  adorned  Clan  Ronald's  mast, 
reminds  us  how,  when  the  first  crusade  set  forth  from  France  and 
Britain,  the  Christian  hosts  carried  with  them  a  goose  and  a  goat 
to  which  they  rendered  homage,  believing  the  Holy  Spirit  to  be 
present  within  them.^ 

Thufi,  too,  it  was  that  in  the  early  glimmering  of  that  grey  dawn 
there  existed  such  strange  anomalies  as  that  Christian  Eewald, 
King  of  the  East  Saxons,  who  erected  in  his  churches  two  altars,, 
at  one  of  which  he  offered  sacrifices  to  Christ,  and  at  the  other  to 
devils ;  a  species  of  hedging  not  peculiar  to  the  dark  ages,  for  a 
recent  writer  on  India  tells  us  of  a  Hindu  convert  who,  while  firmly 
believing  the  Christian  creed,  and  worshipping  the  Saviour,  would 
nevertheless  never  pass  an  image  of  any  of  the  Hindu  gods,  or  even 
a  sacred  stone  daubed  with  red  paint,  without  kneeling  down  to 
worship  it ;  for  she  used  to  say,  "  Maybe  there's  something  in  it !  ". 

1  MiU's  <Uist.  of  the  Cnuades.* 


240  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

The  extent  to  which  these  Pagan  rites  were  tolerated^  even  in 
later  days,  seems  strange  indeed.  Bat  the  conciliatory  policy  of 
the  mediaeval  Christians  made  room  for  every  species  of  heathen 
observance,  provided  the  people  would  submit  to  baptism.  It  was 
the  same  policy  which  in  Eome  itself  suggested  christening  the 
idol-image  of  Jupiter,  and  so  converting  it  into  that  adorable  statue 
of  St.  Peter,  which  the  people  might  thenceforward  worship  to  their 
hearts'  content,  and  whose  sacred  toes  have  ever  since  continued  to 
receive  such  enthusiastic  kisses  from  the  Christians  of  all  successive 
generations. 

It  was  by  adopting  the  symbols  revered  by  the  people,  and  giving 
them  new  meanings, — by  sprinkling  sacred  stones  with  Holy  Water, 
and  by  dedicating  Holy  Wells  to  Christian  saints, — that  the  early 
teachers  enlisted  the  local  affections  of  the  people  on  behalf  of  t&e 
new  faith,  «and  the  old  rites  being  retained,  in  course  of  ages  true 
Christian  churches  were  built  on  the  identical  spots  where  the 
heathen  idolatries  had  so  long  prevailed.  Such  was  the  origin  of 
our  glorious  cathedrals  of  Canterbury  and  Westminster;  of  St. 
Paul's,  St.  Martin's,  St.  Pancras's,  and  many  another  time-honoured 
2)lace  of  worship.  The  tradition  concerning  Westminster  is  that 
it  was  built  on  the  site  of  the  Temple  of  Apollo. 

Sometimes  when  Christian  sanctuaries  were  built  on  Pagan  sites, 
the  very  stones  dear  to  the  heathen  were  retained  within  the  new 
church.  A  curious  instance  of  this  may  be  seen  to  this  day  in 
Spain,  where  at  the  hermitage  of  St.  Michael  at  Arrichinaga,  in  the 
province  of  Biscay,  a  church  has  been  built,  actually  enclosing  the 
huge  stones  of  a  great  dolmen,  between  which  is  placed  the  shrine 
of  the  saint.  Thus  the  original  veneration  for  the  sacred  stones 
was  sanctified  by  the  saintly  combination.  This  Christian  church 
is  so  modern  as  to  prove  that  the  reverence  for  the  great  stones 
must  have  continued  till  a  very  recent  period. 

I  cannot  but  tliiuk  that  a  similar  policy  accounts  for  a  peculiarity 
of  several  ancient  Christian  stone  altars  (one  of  which  you  may  see 
in  a  side  chapel  of  Norwich  Cathedral),  where  a  square  grey  stone, 
measuring  perhaps  eighteen  inches  across,  is  inserted  into  a  large 
stone  slab  of  quite  different  formation  and  colour.     It  serves  to 


BLENDED    FAITHS.  241 

coyer  the  hidden  relic  which  gave  sanctity  to  the  altar,  and  was 

« 

itself  Christianized  by  being  marked  with  five  small  crosses  (symbol- 
izing the  five  wounds  of  Christ).  Nevertheless,  it  seems  probable 
that  these  blae-grey  stones  which  were  exalted  to  such  honour,  were 
themselves  originally  objects  of  heathen  veneration. 

I  am  told  that  nowhere  are  the  traces  of  this  amalgamation  more 
marked  than  in  the  highlands  of  Auvergne,  once  the  stronghold 
of  Druidism,  and  the  province  of  all  others  where  Paganism  longest 
reigned  in  France.  Here  we  are  told  that  idolatrous  worship 
lingered  till  very  recent  times ;  and  though  the  Council  of 
Clermont  fulminated  anathemas  against  those  who  worshipped 
stones — who  carried  the  Eucharist  to  the  graves^  who  ate  meats 
offered  to  devUs — still  the  old  rites  went  on.  So  that  a  May-day 
or  a  Midsummer's-eve  in  Auvergne  still  afford  us  some  remarkable 
instances  of  Christianized  heathendom. 

In  glancing  eastward  and  westward,  nothing  is  more  striking 
than  the  strong  grip  which  this  tendency  to  ancestor  and  devil- 
worship  seems  ever  to  have  had  over  the  human  mind.  Whatever 
waves  of  faith  may  have  passed  over  a  land — whether  Christian, 
Mohammedan,  Buddhist,  or  Brahmin — and  however  each  may  have 
striven,  by  gentle  means  or  by  the  sword,  to  put  it  down,  the 
crushed  faith  has  stiU  been  treasured  in  secret,  and  though  its  own 
votaries  are  generally  ashamed  to  confess  it,  still  nothing  will 
induce  them  to  give  it  up.  Thus  it  still  exists  all  over  the  earth, 
independent  of  the  reigning  faith,  whatever  that  may  be,  and 
actually  in  opposition  to  its  teaching. 

But  of  all  old  superstitions,  that  which  we  find  most  constantly 
cropping  up  is  the  practice  of  the  deisid,  that  is,  a  turn  southward, 
following  the  course  of  the  sun,  such  as  the  custom  of  rowing  a 
boat  sunwise  at  first  starting,  or  of  walking  thrice  sunwise  round 
any  person  to  whom  one  wishes  good-luck.  At  the  new  year,  when 
the  sun  begins  its  yearly  revolution,  a  cow's  hide  used  in  like 
nuuiner  to  be  carried  thrice  round  the  house,  following  the  course 
of  the  sun. 

The  word  deisul  is  derived  from  deaSf  the  right  hand,  and  aid, 
the  Bun;  the  right  haad  being  always  kept  next  to  that  object 

B 


242  IN  THE  HEBBIDES. 

round  which  the  turn  was  made.  I  believe  deas  literally  means 
the  aouthy  which  lies  on  the  right  hand  when  the  face  looks  east- 
ward ;  but  the  word  is  used  to  denote  everything  which  is  right 
and  well  doing.  A  person  turning  against  the  course  of  the  sun 
faces  the  west,  and  everything  becomes  unlucky.  His  right  hand 
will  then  be  to  the  north,  tuaih,  and  the  very  word  tuathaisd, 
denotes  a  stupid  person ;  hence  the  words  deisul  and  tuatJiail  are 
in  Gaelic  equivalent  to  right  and  wrong. 

This  contrary  turn  from  right  to  left  was  called  vnddershina,  or 
eartua-suL  It  was  only  made  when  invoking  a  curse  on  some 
particular  object.  Thus  evil-doers  and  malignant  witches  began 
the  devil's  work  by  so  many  turns  against  the  course  of  the  sun. 
Among  the  confessions  of  a  wretched  schoolmaster  accused  of  witch- 
craft, and  tortured  in  presence  of  James  YI.  and  his  Privy  Council, 
he  is  shown  to  have  gone  round  the  church  of  North  Berwick  in  a 
contrary  direction  to  the  sun,  after  which  he  merely  blew  upon  the 
lock,  and  the  door  opened.  For  this  and  similar  offences  the 
wretched  man  was  burnt  alive.  (Times  had  changed,  since  a 
precisely  similar  action  ascribed  to  St.  Columba  had  been  extolled 
as  a  saintly  miracle  !) 

"WTiatever  may  have  been  the  virtue  derived  from  these  singular 
solar  turns,  we  find  them  again  and  again  alluded  to  in  the  history 
of  various  ancient  nations. 

Even  in  the  sacred  page  we  may  trace  their  symbolical  use ;  most 
notably  in  that  strange  account  of  the  miraculous  siege  of  Jericho, 
when  by  Divine  command  the  host  of  Israel  was  made  to  compass 
the  city  thirteen  times  in  awful  silence,  unbroken  save  by  the  dread 
sound  of  the  seven  sacred  trumpets  borne  by  the  seven  priests  who 
preceded  the  Holy  Ark. 

On  seven  successive  days  were  Joshua  and  his  men  of  war  bidden 
to  form  a  vast  procession,  escorting  the  priests  who  bore  the  ark, 
and,  having  marched  once  round  the  doomed  city  in  the  sight 
of  its  wondering,  and  doubtless  mocking,  people,  they  were  then  to 
return  silently  to  their  camp.  But  on  the  seventh  day  they  were 
commanded  to  compass  the  city  seven  times,  and  when  the  trumpets 
sounded,  then  the  whole  multitude  joined  in  a  shout  so  mighty  that 


OF  SUNWISE  TUBNS.  243 

it  seemed  to  rend  the  very  beaven,  and  even  as  they  did  so  the 
strong  foundations  were  shaken,  and  the  battlemented  walls 
cmmbled  and  fell  to  the  ground,  and  the  Israelites  marched  up 
straight  before  them  and  possessed  the  city  that  had  been  thus 
marveUously  given  into  their  hands. 

Some  idea  of  the  mysterious  virtue  attached  to  these  sunwise 
turns  may  perhaps  be  the  reason  that  the  Jews,  in  several  different 
countries,  thus  march  seven  times  round  their  newly-coffined  dead. 
In  Pagan  records  we  find  the  same  customs  common  to  both  Greeks 
and  Eoman&  There  is  also  historical  evidence  of  their  having  been 
practised  by  the  Gauls  three  thousand  years  ago.  Virgil  mentions 
them  among  the  funeral  rites  of  Pallas,  when  the  mourners  first 
marched  thrice  in  sad  procession  round  the  funeral  pile,  then, 
mounting  their  steeds,  again  made  the  same  sad  circuit  three  times, 
amid  wails  of  sorrow. 

Among  the  Santhals  (sun- worshipping  aborigines  of  India)  the 
corpse  is  carried  thrice  round  the  funeral  pyre,  and  laid  thereon ; 
the  next  of  kin  then  makes  a  torch  of  grass,  and  after  walking  three 
times  round  the  pile  in  silence,  touches  the  mouth  of  the  deceased 
with  the  fiaming  brand,  averting  his  own  face.  After  this  the 
friends  and  kindred  gather  round,  all  facing  the  south,  and  set 
fire  to  the  pyre. 

The  same  ceremony  is  observed  by  every  devout  Hindoo.  In  the 
days  of  suttee,  now  happily  gone  by,  the  wretched  young  widow 
walked  thus  thrice  sunwise  round  the  funeral  pyre  whereon  lay 
the  body  of  her  deceased  lord,  before  she  ventured  to  lie  down 
beside  him,  to  await  her  horrible  death.  I  have  myself  often 
watched  either  the  Brahmins  or  the  nearest  relations  of  the  dead 
walk  thrice  sunwise  round  the  funeral  pjrre  before  they  applied  the 
torch.  In  their  pilgrimage  round  the  holy  city  of  Benares  and 
other  places  of  pilgrimage  they  follow  the  same  course. 

TVith  them,  however,  this  homage  to  the  sun  is  a  natural  part  of 
their  daily  worship,  wherein  he  is  adored  as  the  true  light  of 
Brahma,  filling  earth  and  heaven,  the  foe  of  darkness,  the  destroyer 
of  every  sin.  Therefore  the  worshipper  bows  to  the  great  cause  of 
day,  and  making  a  turn  toward  the  south,  exclaims,  ''  I  follow  the 

R  2 


244  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

course  of  the  snn.  As'  he  in  his  course  moves  through  the  world 
by  the  way  of  the  south,  so  do  I,  in  foUowiug  him,  obtain  the  merit 
of  a  journey  round  the  world  by  way  of  the  south." 

So  in  the  Himalayas.  The  prayer- wheels  are  always  turned 
sunwise,  and  it  is  held  to  be  iniquitous  to  turn  them  in  the  opposite 
direction ;  hence  the  great  unwillingness  of  the  people  to  allow  us 
to  touch  them.  In  Thibet  also,  where  they  build  long  terraces 
engraven  with  forms  of  adoration,  there  is  always  a  path  on  each 
side  of  them,  so  that  the  people  in  passing  by,  may  go  on  one  side 
and  return  by  the  other,  sunwise.  When  they  dance  round  their 
idols,  or  go  in  procession  round  their  temples,  the  same  course  is 
always  followed,  just  as  it  has  been  in  all  ages  by  the  followers  of 
Buddha,  whether  in  Thibet,  Nepaul,  Burmah,  or  Ceylon,  where  it 
has  ever  been  accounted  an  act  of  merit  to  walk  sunwise  round 
every  dagoba,  or  relic  shrine,  in  the  land. 

Thus,  too,  the  devout  Mahommedan  completes  his  meritorious 
pilgrimage  to  Mecca  hy  making  the  circuit  of  the  Caaba  seven  times 
sunwise. 

In  the  Christian  churches  of  Abyssinia  the  officiating  priests, 
bearing  the  cross  and  incense,  thus  march  three  times  round  the 
altar,  with  slow  and  solemn  step,  at  the  end  of  each  part  of  the 
service.  I  suppose  the  custom  is  common  to  all  the  Greek  Church, 
as  in  the  marriage  ceremony  (every  part  of  which  is  thrice  repeated) 
the  young  couple,  having  thrice  drunk  from  the  chalice  and  thrice 
kissed  the  cross,  conclude  by  following  the  priest  thrice  sunwise 
round  the  altar. 

All  Russian  sects  likewise  order  their  processions  so  as  to  follow 
the  sun's  course,  and  I  have  little  doubt  that  some  insensible  trace 
of  homage  to  the  deind  has  ordered  the  course  of  our  own  ecclesi- 
astical processions  round  churches  on  the  day  of  consecration,  when, 
beginning  at  the  east,  they  go  round  the  south  aisle  to  the  west,  a 
course  which  I  believe  is  invariable,  and  not  otherwise  accounted  for. 

That  this  was  the  daily  custom  of  our  ancestors  is  well  known  ; 
and  at  Stonehenge  we  can  still  distinguish  the  earthen  path 
encompassing  the  temple,  whereby  the  priests  and  people  passed  on 
their  daily  round. 


SUNWISE  TUBN&  245 

We  need  not  go  far  for  instances  of  the  deistd.  At  our  own 
tables,  the  bottles  are  always  sent  round  following  the  course  of 
the  sun,  and  to  reverse  their  journey  has  always  been  held  unlucky. 
Should  a  bottle  be  thoughtlessly  diverted  from  its  course,  a  true 
Highlander  will  turn  it  round  before  sending  it  on.  Not  that  this 
feeling  is  peculiar  to  the  north.  The  remark  of  a  Lincolnshire 
servant  concerning  a  helper  whose  waiting  at  table  had  been  com- 
mended, shows  that  the  old  instinct  is  still  alive :  "  Oh  !  I  did  not 
think  much  of  his  waiting !  He  went  round  the  table  against  the 
min." 

Many  quaint  instances  of  the  practice  of  the  deisul  are  recorded 
in  Martin's  '  Tour  in  the  Hebrides,'  a  curious  old  book  published  in 
1690.  For  instance,  when  the  men  of  Lewis  made  expeditions  to 
the  rocky  island  of  St.  Flannan,  in  pursuit  of  sea-fowl,  as  soon  as 
they  had  effected  the  difficult  landing,  they  uncovered  their  heads, 
and  made  a  turn  sunwise^  thanking  God  for  their  safety.  They 
then  repaired  to  the  little  chapel  of  St.  Flannan,  on  approaching 
which,  they  stripped  off  their  upper  garments  and  laid  them  on  a 
great  stone  set  there  on  purpose,  after  which  they  advanced  on  their 
knees  towards  the  ehapel,  and  so  went  round  the  little  building  in 
procession — just  as  the  Hindoos  in  the  Himalayas  do  now.  They 
then  set  to  work  rock-fowling  till  the  hour  of  vespers,  when  the 
same  ceremony  was  repeated.  They  held  it  unlawful  to  kill  any 
eea-bird  after  evening  prayer,  and  in  any  case  might  never  kill  a 
bird  with  a  stone. 

The  islanders  used  to  say  that  even  the  birds  of  the  air  were 
taught  by  nature  to  follow  the  deisul ;  more  especially  noting  how 
the  puffin,  on  its  arrival  in  March,  makes  a  tour  round  the  island 
sunwise,  before  it  will  settle  on  the  ground,  and  observes  the  same 
ceremony  before  its  departure  in  August — therefore,  they  said  it 
was  assuredly  right  that  they  should  make  a  similar  turn  with  their 
boat  before  starting  for  the  fishery  1 

In  Lewis  Mr.  Martin  met  the  parish  minister,  who  had  just 
returned  from  his  first  visit  to  the  distant  Isle  of  St.  Konan,  where 
the  people  had  greeted  him  with  the  assurance  that  he  was  expected, 
as  they  had  beheld  him  by  second  sight.     In  spite  of  his  protests 


246  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

tbey  made  their  sunwise  turn  round  him.  Thej  then  slew  five 
sheep,  one  for  each  family — and  making  sacks  of  their  skins,  at 
once  filled  them  with  barley  meal,  which  they  presented  to  him  as 
being  a  stranger. 

The  idea  of  luck  was,  as  we  have  seen,  connected  with  the  south, 
the  right  hand  being  described  as  the  south  hand.  Therefore  a 
bride  must,  at  the  marriage  service,  be  led  east  by  south,  westward, 
to  the  side  of  her  future  husband ;  and  if  the  young  couple  hope 
for  any  luck  in  the  future,  they  must  begin  their  wedded  life  by 
making  a  turn  sunwise.  Likewise  at  the  churching  of  women,  and 
at  burials,  this  custom  was  commonly  observed  till  quite  recently. 
Every  village  had  its  lucky  spot  round  which  the  dead  were  so  carried. 

It  appears  also  as  if  the  unaccountable  prejudice  against  burying 
the  dead  on  the  north  side  of  a  church  was  due  to  the  same 
insensible  reverence  for  the  sun  (the  source  of  all  purity  and  light), 
towards  whose  rising  the  sleepers  were  to  look  as  they  lay  with 
their  feet  turned  eastward.  The  abode  of  the  evil  spirit  lay  to  the 
north,  away  from  the  sun's  gracious  influences.  Hence  the  crowd 
of  graves  invariably  found  on  the  south  side  of  almost  every  country 
churchyard,  whether  in  Scotland,  Wales,  or  England,  while  on  the 
north  side  there  are  probably  none,  save  perhaps  the  tiny  green 
mounds  that  mark  the  burial-place  of  some  unbaptized  infant,  or 
the  unhaUowed  tomb  of  a  suicide. 

The  same  curious  fact  has  been  remarked  by  antiquaries  in  their 
researches  among  the  graves  of  the  Ancient  Britons.  They  tell  us 
that  in  examining  their  burial  hills,  all  the  interments,  however 
numerous,  are  invariably  on  the  south  side.  Out  of  several  hundred 
barrows  examined  in  different  parts  of  the  country,  only  two 
instances  are  recorded  in  which  human  remains  were  found  to  the 
north  of  the  tumuhis. 

The  perpetual  recurrence  of  the  terms  east  and  west  in  the  mouth 
of  a  genuine  Highlander  of  course  originate  in  the  same  feeling.  If 
you  ask  a  man  into  your  house,  you  bid  him  "  come  west,"  quite 
irrespective  of  the  points  of  the  compass.  To  bid  him  come  east, 
however  true  geographically,  would  be  gross  insult,  involving  ill- 
luck.     Once  within  the  house,  the  host  gives  his  guest  a  dram,  and 


DIVINATION  BY  SMOKE.  247 

bids  him  ''  Put  it  west  his  throat,"  implying  good-will  in  the 
swallowing  of  it.  A  lad  courting  a  lass  ia  said  to  be  '^  putting  it 
west  upon  her." 

If  you  bid  a  man  take  some  work  in  hand  heartily,  you  bid  him 
**put  it  west,"  or  "  put  west  your  foot"  Hence  the  answer  of  a 
poor  old  man  to  whom  a  bolus  had  been  recommended  for  his  often 
infirmities.  Being  asked  if  he  had  taken  it,  he  replied, ''  Na,  mem  ! 
it  wadna  gang  east  I "  meaning  that  it  was  so  utterly  against  the 
grain.  I  suppose,  however,  we  must  refer  merely  to  the  points  of 
the  compass  the  question  lately  asked  us  by  an  old  woman  at  the 
post-office,  whether  she  must  stamp  her  letter  in  the  east  or  west 
comer! 

The  only  exception  to  this  rule  of  good  and  evil  luck  which  has 
ever  come  to  my  knowledge  is  in  the  case  of  divination  by  smoke, 
when  it  seems  to  be  accounted  the  luckiest  omen  that  the  smoke 
should  drift  eastward  towards  the  rising  sun. 

A  quaint  instance  of  this  old  superstition  came  under  the  notice 
of  the  minister  of  Nether-Lochaber  in  the  autumn  of  1872.  An 
old  man  had  gone  to  a  distant  market  to  sell  a  colt.  He  was  absent 
so  long  that  the  wife  grew  anxious,  more  especially  desiring  to 
know  whether  he  had  been  successful  in  getting  the  price  they  had 
agreed  to  ask  for  the  colt  So  she  heaped  up  a  big  fire,  and  sent 
out  her  young  daughter  to  gather  a  bundle  of  green  alder  boughs. 
These  she  placed  on  the  fire  ;  ^then  going  outside  the  cottage,  watched 
to  see  in  what  direction  the  smoke  would  drift  as  it  issued  from  the 
chimney.  It  so  chanced  that  it  floated  eastward,  and  the  wifie 
turned  to  her  daughter  well-pleased,  saying  she  knew  all  was  weU, 
for  she  had  never  known  that  omen  fail. 

Nor  did  it  do  so  in  this  case,  for  a  few  hours  later  the  gudeman 
returned,  having  sold  his  colt  for  a  price  considerably  higher  than 
he  had  expected.  It  seems  that  the  only  condition  necessary  to 
working  this  spell  is,  that  the  alder  hotLgks  must  he  gathered  with 
definite  reference  to  the  case  in  pointy  and  hy  the  hand  of  a  maiden. 
If  these  two  points  are  not  rigidly  observed,  the  augury  will  fail, 
and  the  smoke  will  drift  aimlessly  to  and  fro ;  the  direction  of  the 
wind  is  apparently  a  matter  of  no  consequence  !    The  ever-observant 


248  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

narrator  of  the  above,  adds  that  this  particular  form  of  witchcraft 
was  common  both  among  the  Greeks  and  Eomans,  and  was  kno^vn 
to  the  students  of  magic  as  capnomancy,  that  is,  divination  of 
smoke.  It  seems,  however,  that  when  the  priests  drew  auguries 
from  the  smoke  of  the  sacrifices,  the  most  hopeful  omen  was  that 
the  column  of  smoke  should  ascend  direct  heavenward. 

Perhaps  the  most  remarkable  use  of  the  terms  east  and  west 
occurs  in  the  old  version  of  the  creed  in  Gaelic,  which  tells  how  our 
Lord  "  we7it  East "  into  the  place  of  tlu  deady  and  "  went  West "  inio 
Heaven, 

(By  the  way,  how  curious  in  this  land  of  rain  to  notice  the 
derivation  of  the  Gaelic  word  hell — Ifnn,  from  Lhhuim^  the 
island  of  incessant  rain  1) 

One  remarkable  survival  of  an  old  'superstition,  which  is  still 
commonly  believed  in  throughout  the  North-West  Highlands  and 
Isles,  is  that  scrofula  can  certainly  be  cured  by  the  touch  of  ''  the 
seventh  son  of  a  woman,  never  a  girl  or  wench  being  bom  between." 

A  gentleman  from  the  Long  Island  states  that  in  the  Isle  of 
Lewis  it  is  customary  for  the  seventh  son  to  give  a  silver  sixpence 
with  a  hole  in  it  to  each  patient.  The  coin  is  strung,  and  the 
sufferer  must  constantly  wear  it  round  his  neck.  Should  he  lose 
it,  the  malady  returns.  Age  is  of  no  account  in  the  exercise  of  this 
magic  gift.  The  smallest  child  may  heal  the  aged  man  ;  all  that  is 
requisite  is  that  some  one  should  take  the  little  hand  and  apply  it  to 
the  sore. 

In  some  cases  the  touch  is  applied  '^  In  the  Name  of  the  Most 
Holy  Trinity,  one  God,  Who  only  works  cures." 

Is  it  not  somewhat  startling  to  reflect  that  until  the  year  a.d. 
1719  a  very  solemn  service  was  retained  in  our  own  Book  of 
Common  Prayer,  to  be  used  "  At  the  Healing,'' — that  is  to  say, 
when  the  same  work  of  miraculous  cure  was  effected  by  the  touch  of 
the  British  sovereign )  The  office  appointed  by  the  Church  to  be  said 
on  these  occasions  was  quietly  omitted  from  the  Prayer  Book  by 
command  of  George  L,  who  altogether  discouraged  the  superstition. 
Yet  the  practice  was  only  finally  relinquished  by  George  III. 

As  to  the  Jacobite  party,  they  retained  their  faith  in  the  Stuart 


THE  king's  touch.  249 

tonch  to  the  yerj  last.  Thus,  when  Charles  Edward  was  at 
Avignon,  certain  sufferers  were  taken  to  him  there ;  others  were 
brought  to  him  at  Holyrood.  Of  course  there  was  every  reason 
why  he  should  cling  to  a  prerogative  which  belonged  only  to  him 
who  was  king  by  Divine  right. 

For  while  the  ban  of  the  Church  was  pronounced  against  all 
sevejith  Bons  who  dared  to  exercise  this  healing  art,  there  was,  as  we 
have  seen,  a  special  liturgy  appointed  for  use  when  the  sufferers  were 
brought  to  the  King, — a  practice  sanctioned  by  both  the  Kirk  anl 
the  Law,  inasmuch  as  ^  daily  experience  doth  witness  that  Kings 
and  Queens  do  possess  this  speciall  gift  of  Gkxi,  to  heall  with  only 
touching.'' 

This  custom  was  first  introduced  by  Edward  the  Confessor  in 
1058,  and  was  continued  by  his  successors.  So  we  hear  that  Charles 
I.  did  on  St.  John's  Day  1633  visit  Holyrood  Chapel,  and  there 
''  heallit  100  persons,  young  and  old,  of  the  Cruelles,  or  King's  Evil." 

In  the  days  of  his  captivity,  when  a  rude  soldiery  would  not 
suffer  the  poor  cripples  to  come  near  the  royal  person,  the  King 
prayed  aloud  that  God  would  grant  their  petition,  and  that  prayer, 
says  the  historian,  was  granted,  although  the  touch  was  thus  pre- 
vented. Charles  II.  actually  tauched  ninety4wo  thousand  one 
hundred  and  seven  such  patienta,  being  an  average  of  twelve  per 
diem  for  twenty  years.^  Verily  he  had  "  a  doctor's  trouble,  but 
without  the  fees ! " 

In  fact,  he  paid  the  fees,  as  he  restored  the  custom  of  giving  to 
each  sick  person  a  broad  gold  piece,  instead  of  the  **  beggarly  silver 
coin  "  which  his  predecessors  had  substituted  for  the  original  "  fair 
Tose-noble."  According  to  Wiseman,  the  King's  physician,  scarcely 
one  instance  occurred  in  which  the  Boyal  touch  failed  to  accomplish 
a  cure.  Indeed,  not  he  alone,  but  a  host  of  learned  divines  and 
«nrgeons  wrote  treatises  on  the  subject,  declaring  their  perfect  faith 
in  this  miraculous  power.  Even  in  the  dajs  of  good  Queen  Bess, 
an  eminent  surgeon,  in  a  professional  work  on  the  treatment  of  this 
disease,  declares  his  confident  belief  that  when  all  the  other  methods 
of  cure  have  failed,  people  may  expect  sure  relief  from  the  touch  of 
Her  Majesty. 


250  IN   THE  HEBRIDES. 

Nevertheless,  when  vain  men  and  women  dared  to  practise 
soothing  mesmeric  passes  and  "  stroking,"  the  cures  which  they 
sometimes  performed  were  invariably  attributed  to  witchcraft,  just 
as  magic  was  suspected,  when  the  Egyptian  priests  of  old  proved 
that  "  by  touching  with  the  hands,"  or  "  stroking  with  gentle 
hands,"  they  could  immediately  restore  to  health  those  to  whom 
medicines  had  proved  of  no  avail. 

In  early  days  these  royal  physicians  signed  their  patients  with 
the  Cross ;  but  this  was  discontinued  when  the  wrath  of  Home  was 
fulminated  against  Protestant  kings,  to  whom,  nevertheless,  Catho- 
lics, as  well  as  patients  of  other  creeds,  continued  to  come  for  relief. 
In  fact,  as  if  to  prove  how  powerless  was  the  anathema  of  the  Pope 
to  check  this  gift  of  Heaven,  we  find  Henry  VIII.  not  content  with 
miraculously  curing  all  scrofula-stricken  patients  who  came  to  him, 
but  also  such  as  were  afflicted  with  cruel  cramps.  The  former  he 
cured  by  the  usual  royal  process  of  stroking ;  while  on  the  latter  he 
bestowed  magical  rings,  known  as  cramp  rings. 

So  strictly  orthodox,  however,' were  these  miracles,  that  Church 
and  State  alike  clung  jealously  to  them,  as  to  a  most  precious  item 
of  regal  prerogative,  and  so  late  as  1 684  (while  presumptuous  sub- 
jects who  dared  to  work  similar  cures  were  condemned  as  wizards 
and  witches),  we  are  told  how  one  Thomas  Russell  was  tried  for 
high  treason,  because  he  had  spoken  with  contempt  of  the  King's 
touch. 

The  practice  of  bestowing  on  every  patient  a  gold  coin,  suspended 
from  the  neck  by  a  white  ribbon,  was  first  introduced  by  Henry 
VII.  in  the  gladness  of  finding  that  he  indeed  possessed  the  regal 
gift  of  healing,  just  as  truly  as  that  poor  Kichard  whose  Divine 
right  to  the  throne  he  failed  to  acknowledge. 

Charles  II.,  as  we  have  seen,  dealt  out  his  ninety-two  thousand 
cures  and  golden  coins  with  liberal  hand,  but  in  later  days  a  trifling 
silver  coin  was  substituted.  Such  an  one  was  bestowed  by  Queen 
Anne  on  the  infant  Dr.  Samuel  Johnson,  and  is  still  preserved  as  a 
relic  by  the  Duke  of  Devonshire.  It  is  strange,  indeed,  to  think  of 
the  great  embodiment  of  heavy  learning  having  been  subjected  to 
this  quaint  remedy  for  his  infantile  pains.   He  speaks  of  bis  earliest 


CURES  FOR  EPILEPSY.  251 

recollections  of  Qneen  Anne,  as  a  lady  dressed  in  a  black  hood,  and 
glittering  with  diamonds,  into  whose  awful  presence  he  had  been 
ushered  in  his  infancy,  that  by  her  royal  touch  she  might  cure  him 
of  his  sore  disease  1 

The  same  strange  power  has  always  been  claimed  by  the  Kings 
of  France,  as  part  of  their  Divine  right.  So  early  as  a.d.  481  it 
was  practised  by  Clovis.  And  we  are  told  that  on  Easter  Day  1686 
Lewis  XIY.  touched  sixteen  hundred  people,  saying  to  each,  **  he 
rtnf  te  touehe,  Dieu  te  ^uSriwe  !  " 

When  royalty  refased  any  longer  to  practise  this  healing  art,  a 
substitute  was  found,  noways  flattering  to  the  royal  touch.  It  was 
discovered  that  rubbing  the  body  of  a  patient  with  the  dead  hand 
of  a  criminal  who  had  been  executed,  was  a  certain  and  instant  cure 
for  the  King's  Evil.  Such  a  hand  had  other  good  qualities  as  well, 
and  even  in  the  beginning  of  the  present  century,  it  would  sell  for 
a  considerable  sum,  the  executioner  at  Kewgate  deriving  large 
monies  from  this  little  perquisite. 

But  the  corpses  of  criminals  have  ever  possessed  a  mystic  value, 
and  they  hold  a  distinct  place  in  the  pharmacy  of  our  ancestors. 
"  The  moss  which  grows  on  the  skull  of  a  man  that  hath  been 
hanged "  possessed  marvellous  curative  properties,  and  was  a  rare 
ingredient  in  precious  salves.  In  Caithness  and  elsewhere  the  skull 
of  a  suicide,  used  as  a  drinking  cup,  was  considered  to  be  a  sure 
cure  for  epilepsy,  and  the  corpses  of  such  were  liable  to  be  dug  up 
in  order  to  obtain  this  precious  treasure.  (Probably  the  special 
value  attributed  to  ivory  in  the  pharmacopoeia  of  our  ancestors  lent 
additional  merit  to  the  skull.) 

Perhaps  in  a  malady  so  mysterious  as  epilepsy — one  whose 
horrible  characteristics  so  strangely  resemble  those  attributed  to 
demoniacal  possession — ^we  need  scarcely  wonder  to  find  that  in 
dealing  with  it  the  people  have  ever  been  more  inclined  to  trust  to 
the  efficacy  of  propitiatory  sacrifices,  than  to  the  leech's  skilL 

Consequently,  in  our  own  Western  Highlands,  and  in  some  of  the 
border  counties,  it  was  till  very  recently,  quite  a  common  ceremony 
to  kill  a  cock  beside  the  sick  man,  and  either  bury  it  beneath  the 
floor  of  the  cottage,  or  at  least  let  its  blood  trickle  into  a  hole  in  the 


252  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

floor.  To  this  was  probably  added  some  of  the  patient's  hair,  and 
some  parings  of  his  nails !  (A  curious  survival  of  the  old  belief 
that  when  "one  possessed"  had  been  exorcised,  the  malignant  spirits, 
driven  from  the  heart  and  head,  took  refuge  in  the  hair,  or  concealed 
themselves  beneath  the  nails.) 

It  is  not  very  many  years  since  a  fisherman  in  the  flourishing 
town  of  Nairn  died  suddenly  in  an  epileptic  fit.  The  doctor  being 
a  man  well  loved,  and  who  possessed  the  full  confidence  of  the 
people,  was  told  by  the  sorrowing  relations  that  they  had  at  least 
the  comfort  of  knowing  that  they  had  done  everything  that  was 
possible  on  his  behalf.  On  further  inquiry,  he  found  that  they  had 
buried  a  cock  alive  beneath  his  bed,  and  they  pointed  out  the  spot, 
with  evident  satisfaction. 

In  the  same  town  he  was  shown  two  spots  on  the  public  road 
where  epileptics  had  fallen,  and  where  cocks  had  been  buried  alive 
to  appease  the  demon.  This  ceremony  is  in  the  records  of  earlier 
days  described  as  "  the  yirding  (earthing)  of  a  quik  cokin  the  grundy^ 
and  is  classed  as  a  sacrifice  to  devils ;  consequently  the  actors  will 
rarely  confess  to  having  taken  part  therein,  but  give  an  evasive 
answer,  as  if  fearing  to  offend  the  Evil  Power  by  any  positive 
denial. 

Sir  James  Simpson  mentions  several  instances  within  his  own 
knowledge,  in  which  this  strange  remedy  has  been  resorted  to,  for 
the  cure  of  fits,  epilepsy,  and  insanity.  In  one  case  a  cock  was 
killed  and  deposited  in  a  hole  in  the  kitchen  floor,  on  the  spot 
where  a  child  had  fallen  down  in  a  fit  of  convulsions ;  and  a  Hoss- 
shire  lassie  told  him  that  the  neighbours  were  urging  her  mother  to 
try  the  like  cure  for  the  same  cause ! 

He  also  speaks  of  the  sacrifice  of  cats,  moles,  and  other  animals. 
Thus,  at  Nigg,  in  Hoss-shire,  a  lad  being  attacked  with  epilepsy,  his 
friends  laid  on  his  head  a  plate,  and  above  it,  held  a  living  mole,  by 
the  tail.  They  then  cut  oif  its  head,  and  allowed  the  blood  to  drip 
on  to  the  plate.  Three  moles  were  thus  killed  in  succession,  but 
without  effect. 

This  offering  a  life  for  a  life  is  the  common  Hindoo  practice  in 
cases  of  sickness.     Various  domestic  animals  are  brought  into  the 


SACRIFICING  A  COCK.  253 

room,  from  a  belief  that  thej  will  absorb  the  noxious  principles  of 
disease,  and  act  as  disinfectants.  When  they  are  supposed  to  have 
done  their  work,  they  Are  thrown  from  the  window.  Even  in  the 
case  of  so  enlightened  a  prince  as  the  young  Bajah  of  Kolapore, 
whose  death  at  Florence  was  a  cause  of  so  much  regret,  the  presence 
of  four  European  physicians  would  have  been  considered  by  no 
means  sufficient  had  these  traditional  Hindoo  prescriptions  been 
neglected ;  and  as  the  Florentine  authorities  might  justly  have 
objected  had  these  wretched  animals  been  cast  from  the  windows 
into  the  street,  they  were  thrown  down  into  an  open  courtyard  1 

Among  the  Santhals,  and  various  other  tribes  both  of  Xorthem 
and  Southern  India,  it  is  customary  in  every  case  of  dangerous 
illness  to  sacrifice  a  cock  beside  the  patient,  to  whatever  demon  is 
supposed  to  have  caused  his  malady.  A  live  cock  is  also  nailed  to 
the  funeral  pyre. 

In  Algeria,  the  Moors  and  negroes  drown  living  cocks  in  a 
sacred  well,  as  the  surest  cure  for  epilepsy  and  madness. 

Akin  to  these  memories  of  the  old  pagan  creeds  and  rites  of  our 
ancestors,  are  various  quaint  customs  and  superstitions  which  still 
linger  in  many  an  out-of-the-way  comer  of  the  Isles  and  Highlands ; 
also  a  multitude  of  dreamy  old  legends  and  traditions,  which,  to 
some  minds,  may  seem  to  be  mere  idle  folly,  but  of  which  the  most 
trivial  details  do  possess  a  special  value, — an  interest  deeper  than 
their  own,  linking  them  to  tales  of  the  far  East,  and  affording  clues 
to  guide  us  backward  through  the  mazes  of  lost  antiquarian  lore. 
Already  they  are  but  scattered  fragments,  which  must  be  carefully 
gathered  together,  by  those  who  know  their  worth,  for  the  ban  of 
kirk  and  school  lie  heavily  on  all  that  savours  of  superstition. 
Even  the  old  stories  are  losing  favour ;  and  though  the  young  folk 
still  listen,  there  are  no  longer  such  gatherings  as  there  were  a  few 
years  back,  when  fifty  or  sixty  people  would  crowd  round  some 
Father  of  the  Clachan  to  hear  one  wild  legend  after  another. 

One  such  man  used  to  live  at  Broadford  in  the  Isle  of  Skye,  who 
told  wondrous  tales  of  the  Elan  na  Fermor,  Island  of  the  Big  Men, 
that  is,  the  opposite  Isle  of  Haasay,  where  huge  bones  of  some 
extinct  race  of  giants  are  still  shown  in  the  kirk. 


254  IN   THE  HEBRIDES. 

He  told  also  of  the  Picts,  or  little  men,  whose  curious  ''bee-hive 
houses,"  built  under  ground,  chamber  within  chamber,  still  puzzle 
the  antiquaries  in  Lewis  and  Uist ;  unless,  indeed,  they  have  been 
content  to  accept  Campbell  of  Islay's  suggestion  of  the  strange 
likeness  between  these  old  houses  and  those  in  common  use  among 
the  little  Lapps  of  the  present  day.  Both  are  alike  sunk -in  the 
ground,  so  that  to  the  passer-by  they  appear  but  as  grassy  conical 
hillocks,  with  a  hole  at  the  top  to  act  as  chimney  for  the  fire  which 
bums  in  the  centre  of  the  hut — a  chimney  through  which  a  man 
standing  upright  might  suddenly  thrust  his  head,  greatly  to  the 
amazement  of  the  passers-by. 

Eound  these  huts,  say  the  old  Gaelic  fairy-tales,  the  little  men 
drove  their  herds  of  wild  deer,  and  the  little  women  came  forth  to 
milk  the  hinds  ;  just  as,  at  the  present  day,  the  little  Lapps  still 
drive  the  wild  deer  down  from  the  mountains  and  the  little  Lapp 
women  milk  the  hinds,  and  give  the  traveller  rein-deer  cream  in 
bowls  of  birch- wood. 

And  in  case  any  foolish  unbeliever  should  doubt,  as  some  have 
doubted,  the  existence  of  rein-deer  on  our  Scottish  hills,  and  should 
venture  to  suggest  that  our  wild  red  deer  never  would  submit  tamely 
to  be  thus  herded  and  driven  about,  we  refer  him  to  the  old  Orkney 
Saga,  which  tells  how,  in  the  eleventh  century,  when  Harold  and 
Eonald,  Earls  of  Orkney,  made  peace  after  their  deadly  feuds,  they 
came  over  to  t^aithness  to  hunt  the  rein-deer ;  and  they  and  their 
merry  men  feasted  abundantly  on  their  venison,  and  left  a  great 
store  of  bones,  both  of  red  deer  and  rein-deer,  as  a  special  legacy  to 
Professor  Owen,  and  for  the  discomfiture  of  the  incredulous,  for 
there  the  bones  remain  to  this  day. 

So,  after  all,  it  is  probable  that  the  fairy  tales  which  tell  of  the 
little  people  who  lived  in  the  grassy  hillocks  and  milked  the  wild 
deer  are  true  stories,  only  spiritualized  by  the  mists  of  time  and 
imagination. 

The  old  man  of  Broadford  was  "  wcel  acquaint "  with  the  old 
wife  in  Lewis  to  whom  windbound  sailors  told  their  griefs,  where- 
upon she  would  give  them  a  rope  with  three  knots,  bidding  them 
never  unfasten  the  third.     And  sure  enough,  when  they  undid  the 


TRANSF0UMATI0N8.  255 

first  knot  a  gentle  breeze  would  rise,  and  at  the  second  there  sprang 
up  a  good  stiff  gale ;  but  once  a  rash  mariner  was  so  mad  as  to 
undo  the  third,  and  straightway  a  wild  hurricane  swept  over  land 
and  sea,  and  the  boats  were  wrecked,  and  the  men  only  escaped 
with  their  lives  to  rue  their  comrade's  presumption.  Is  this  not  a 
curious  nineteenth-century  edition  of  the  old  accounts  of  the  Druid 
priestesses  of  Ulsle  de  Sain,  off  Brest,  who,  in  the  days  of  Strabo, 
used  to  govern  the  winds  by  their  wild  songs,  and  sell  a  gale  to  all 
devout  mariners  9 

This  old  man  would  also  tell  how  it  came  to  pass  that  so  many 
soldiers  had  returned  safe  to  the  Isles  after  the  French  and  Spanish 
campaigns.  All  because  "  there  was  a  blind  man  in  Broadford  who 
was  able  to  put  the  charm  upon  them.  On  each  in  turn  he  laid  his 
hands,  and  they  went  away  looking  straight  before  them.  One 
man  half  turned  his  head  and  saw  his  own  shoulder — ^an  evil 
omen — and  sure  enough  he  lost  that  arm ;  but  though  the  baUs  fell 
round  the  others  as  thick  as  peas,  they  were  nowise  hurt,  but 
returned  as  living  proofs  of  the  blind  man's  power." 

As  to  the  stories  of  witchcraft  in  the  present  day,  they  are  still 
numberless.  The  old  poacher  told  how  he  himself  had  been  follow- 
ing a  fine  hart  and  stag  in  the  corries,  when  suddenly,  to  his  amaze- 
ment, they  were  transformed  into  a  man  and  woman.  He  watched 
them  tremblingly,  thanking  his  stars  that  he  had  not  fired  on  them ; 
when,  in  the  twinkling  of  an  eye,  he  once  more  beheld  only  a 
couple  of  deer  feeding  in  the  twilight.  Had  he  only  been  possessed 
of  a  silver  sixpence,  he  would  surely  have  had  a  shot  at  them  ;  but 
a  common  bullet  was  useless  against  such  game,  so  he  just  stalked 
them  for  awhile,  and  again  saw  them  resume  their  natural  form, 
when  he  cautiously  crept  away  down  the  glen,  and  was  right  glad 
to  find  himself  once  more  in  safe  quarters ! 

I  think,  however,  he  must  have  appropriated  to  himself  some 
Graelic  legend  of  olden  times,  as  the  same  story  occurs  in  one  of  the 
very  oldest  Hindoo  poems,  in  which  the  Bajah  Pandu  goes  out  hunt- 
ing, and  shoots  his  arrows  at  a  very  fine  stag  and  hind,  which  straight- 
way resume  human  form,  and  appear  as  a  Brahmin  and  his  wife, 
who,  turning  on  the  luckless  archer,  curse  him  with  a  terrible  curse. 


256  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

As  regards  the  silver  bullet  or  coin,  as  a  witch-antidote,  its 
efficacy  is  beyond  all  question. 

The  boat-builder  who  knows  his  trade  must  place  a  crooked  six- 
pence in  the  keel  of  every  boat  (and  should  she  prove  an  unusually 
bonnie  craft,  her  owner  will  probably  do  his  best  to  start  her  on  her 
iirat  sail  without  spectators,  lest  any,  beholding,  should  covet  her, 
and  so  work  mischief).  The  fishers  of  the  good  old  school  have  full 
faith  in  the  power  of  the  silver  coin  to  avert  mischief  from  them- 
selves as  well  as  from  their  boats,  and  a  sixpence  placed  in  the  heel 
of  the  stocking,  is  even  a  more  important  wedding  ceremony,  than 
the  cross  drawn  on  the  door-post  to  keep  off  the  witches. 

The  stories  that  tell  how  certain  "  ill-women "  from  the  Isle 
of  Kaasay  were  turned  into  seals,  are '^  matters  of  undoubted 
credence. 

So  are  a  hundred  instances  in  which  (now  in  the  present  day) 
women  spite  one  another,  by  destroying  the  milk  of  their  neigh- 
bour's cow — a  fact  which  I  have  again  and  again  heard  most  gravely 
asserted  in  various  parts  of  Scotland  by  men  and  women  who  in 
most  respects  were  sensible  and  clear-headed  enough.  They  believe 
that  if  only  a  woman  can  privately  gather  a  handful  of  grass  from 
the  roof  of  her  neighbour's  cow-shed,  all  the  milk  will  pass  from 
her  neighbour's  coir  to  her  own  pail ;  and  in  proof  of  their  super- 
stition, they  point  out  how  so  and  so  has  invariably  twice  as  much 
milk  as  her  own  cows  could  possibly  yield,  and  how  she  always 
brings  a  double  weight  of  butter  to  the  market 

I  must  not  betray  the  names  of  old  friends,  but  I  know  of  divers 
hill-side  bothies  where  a  bowl  of  rich  cream  or  curds  ia  always 
ready,  and  freely  offered,  greatly  to  the  scandal  of  jealous  neigh- 
bours, who  believe  it  to  be  all  the  produce  of  the  black  art.  One 
of  the  principal  inhabitants  of  a  northern  town  assured  me  she 
had,  with  her  own  eyes,  seen  a  woman  preparing  to  make  cheese, 
and  that  all  her  pans  were  filled  to  the  brim,  though  it  was  well 
known  that  two  of  her  cows  were  dry,  and  a  third  scarcely  yielding 
sufficient  nulk  for  the  family ! 

Of  such  an  one  it  is  common  to  say,  ''Oh  1  she  must  have  been 
drawing  Vie  tether  ;  "  meaning  that  early  on  Beltane  mom,  ere  her 


WITCH  CHARMS.  257 

neighbours  were  astir,  she  had  gone  forth  secretly,  dragging  her 
cow's  tether  through  the  dewy  grass  all  round  her  field,  and  mutter- 
ing incantations  to  secure  good  milk  1 

On  one  occasion  two  women  were  caught  in  the  very  act  of 
brushing  the  May  dew  from  the  pastures  with  a  long  hair  tether. 
They  fled,  leaving  their  tether  behind  them.  The  man  who  found 
it,  hung  it  above  the  door  of  the  cow-byre.  The  consequence 
was  that  the  dairy-maids  could  not  find  pails  enough  to  hold  the 
supply  of  milk.  But  the  fanner  thought  this  was  uncanny,  so 
he  burnt  the  rope,  on  which  were  a  number  of  knots,  every  one 
of  which  exploded  like  a  pistol-shot,  in  the  fire.  In  preparing 
such  a  tether,  the  hair  of  a  different  cow  must  be  used  for  each 
knot 

When  under-hand  dealings  of  this  sort  are  suspected,  a  counter- 
charm  must  at  once  be  applied.  Such  an  one  came  under  the  notice 
of  Mr.  Carmichael,  in  Uist,  in  the  summer  of  1874.  It  is  known 
as  the  Eolan  an  Torranain,  or  Wise- woman  Wisdom,  which  not 
only  insures  a  cow  against  the  evil  eye,  but  causes  her  to  give 
quantities  of  rich  milk. 

The  Torranain  was  described  to  him  as  a  large  snow-white 
blossom,  growing  in  rocky  places  on  the  hills,  which  fills  with  the 
dew  of  bliss  while  the  tide  is  flowing,  and  slowly  dries  up  again 
during  the  ebbing.  Therefore,  to  obtain  the  virtue  of  the  flower, 
it  must  be  gathered  during  the  flow  of  the  tide,  and  then  placed 
under  one  of  the  milk-pails ;  not,  however,  till  it  has  been  waved 
over  it  thrice  in  a  simwise  circle,  while  slowly  and  solemnly  chant- 
ing the  EolaSj  an  incantation  in  which  St.  Columba,  St.  Bride,  St. 
Gran,  and  St.  Michael,  of  the  high-crested  steeds,  are  all  called  upon 
to  lend  their  aid  to  win  the  nine  blessings. 

The  combination  of  the  old  planet  worship,  traceable  in  the 

reverence  for  tides  and  the    sunwise  circle,  with  the   appeal  to 

Christian  saints,  is  noteworthy.     Mr.  (.-armichaers  informant  did 

liot  know  the  flower,  but  said  she  would  gladly  give  one  pound  for 

the  information,  and  that  she  had  travelled  far  to  see  an  old  man 

(a  descendant  of  the  celebrated  herbalists,  the  Bethunes  of  Skye, 

Mull,  and  Islay),  who  knows  much  about  flowers,  but  his  wife  would 

8 


258  IS   THE  HEBRIDES. 

on  no  account  allow  him  to  tell  her,  and  rated  her  soundly  for 
daring  to  come  to  her  house  on  such  unholy  missions,  supposing  she 
wanted  to  take  away  her  neighbour's  milk  I 

I  believe  that  at  the  present  day  there  is  scarcely  a  district  in  the 
Highlands  in  which  some  unlucky  old  wife  is  not  shunned  by  her 
neighbours  from  the  conviction  that  she  is  not  "  canny."  But  so 
far  from  maltreating  her,  they  invariably  make  way  for  her  at  kirk 
and  market,  never  refusing  anything  she  asks  for,  however  incon- 
venient her  request  may  be.  One  such  old  woman  we  knew  well, 
whose  neighbours  firmly  believed  that  she  frequently  assumed  the 
form  of  a  cat,  and  sat  on  the  rafters  to  bewitch  her  husband. 
She  had  the  reputation  of  bewitching  other  people  besides  him, 
and  certain  it  is  that  dire  evils  befell  those  who  incurred  her 
hatred. 

As  to  dissuading  the  people  from  consulting  these  weird-wives, 
they  have  ready  answers  in  store.  One  woman  will  tell  you  how, 
when  she  had  no  family,  she  consulted  the  old  cailliaehj  and  soon 
afterwards  became  the  joyful  mother  of  children. 

Another  will  tell  how  her  milk  went  from  her,  and  the  witch 
brought  it  back.  She  can  bring  luck  too  to  the  herring  boats,  so  it 
would  be  rash  economy  to  save  her  puckle  of  meal. 

Happy  it  is  for  these  poor  ignorant  old  wives  that  the  days  are 
gone  by  when  the  kirk  sessions  used  to  vote  supplies  of  fuel  for  the 
burning  of  the  witches,  and  when  the  clergy,  as  a  matter  of  course, 
stood  by  the  funeral  pyre,  not,  however,  to  comfort  the  poor 
victims,  to  whose  shrieks  they  could  listen  unmoved,  as  to  those  of 
expiring  devils.  Little  mercy  awaited  them  from  Eomish  priest  or 
Protestant  minister.  They  were  held  by  both  alike  to  have 
renounced  their  baptism  and  so  placed  themselves  beyond  the  reach 
of  God's  mercy ;  and  while  no  priest  would  shrive  one  accused  of 
the  black  art,  however  penitent  she  might  be,  no  more  could  the 
Heformers  find  one  glimmer  of  hope  for  such  an  one.  Luther  decreed 
that  all  such  must  be  burnt ;  and  John  Knox  stood  by  the  fire  to 
"  mak  sicker." 

So  admirable  a  thing  as  the  destruction  of  a  witch  was  held  to  be 
work  meet  for  the  day  of  rest,  "  a  sanctifying  "  of  the  Sabbath  1 


WITCH  TORTUHES.  259 

And  there  were  even  cases  of  church  services  being  omitted  in  order 
that  minister  and  people  might  be  present  at  the  burning. 

The  brutalities  to  wliich  these  poor  ignorant  women  were  sub- 
jected are  almost  incredible,  though  our  ancestors  seem  to  have 
considered  them  quite  right  and  proper. 

There  were  actually  men  appointed  in  every  district,  known  as 
prickers  or  witch-finders,  who  received  from  the  kirk  sessions  and 
Court  of  Justiciary  sums  averaging  six  pounds  Scots  for  every  witch 
whom  they  discovered.  In  some  instances  the  clergy  themselves 
became  witch-prickers. 

It  was  supposed  that  every  witch  and  wizard  bore  the  devil's 
mark,  which  was  simply  a  small  discoloured  spot,  which  would 
neither  feel  pain  nor  bleed,  though  a  large  pin  were  thrust  through 
it.  So  soon,  therefore,  as  any  person  was  suspected  of  witchcraft 
(no  matter  how  young  and  delicate  a  maiden,  or  how  venerable  a 
grand-dame),  she  was  seized  and  stripped  naked,  bound  with  ropes, 
and  pricked  all  over  with  sharp  needles.  Screams  of  agony  were 
of  no  avaU.  The  witch-pricker  continued  his  devilish  work  till 
the  exhausted  victim  could  scream  no  more.  Whereupon  at  the 
next  thrust  of  the  needle  it  was  declared  that  the  mark  had  been 
found ! 

Then  sometimes  for  a  whole  week  the  tormentors  took  it  by  turns 
to  watch,  and  keep  the  poor  sufferer  awake,  lest  in  her  dreams  she 
should  commune  with  Satan,  as  also  in  hopes  of  extorting  semi- 
delirious  confessions  ;  the  watchers  themselves  relieved  guard  every 
f  our-and-twenty  hours. 

After  these  preliminaries,  the  accused  were  delivered  to  the 
tormentors  to  extort  further  confessions ;  and  every  form  of  torture 
which  the  Arch-Fiend  himself  oould  have  devised,  was  in  turn 
practised  upon  the  poor  quivering  flesh.  They  were  sprinkled  with 
boiling  pitch  and  brimstone,  which  produced  appalling  sores — they 
were  suspended  in  mid-air  while  burning  torches  were  held  beneath 
their  uplifted  arms.  Finger-nails  were  wrenched  off — ^red-hot  tongs, 
playfully  gripped  the  bones,  after  burning  away  the  flesh;  the 
limbs  were  crushed  with  screws  and  hammers,  while  a  witch-bridle 
(the  four  iron  points  of  which  pierced  the  tongue,  the  palate,  and 

8  2 


260  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

both  cheeks)  was  fastened  on  by  a  padlock  at  the  back  of  the  neck, 
and  thus,  to  an  iron  ring  in  the  wall. 

Sometimes  the  swimming  test  was  applied.  The  victim  was 
dragged  to  a  pond  and  thrown  in  with  her  thumbs  and  toes  tied 
together.  If  the  merciful  waters  would  receive  and  drown  her,  her 
innocence  was  proven.  But  should  they  reject  her  and  suffer  her 
to  float,  she  was  guilty  beyond  all  doubt,  and  the  hottest  bonfire 
must  be  made  ready  for  her.  Then  she  was  dragged  backwards  by 
her  hair  to  the  court,  lest  by  her  looks  she  should  bewitch  the 
judges,  who  then  solemnly  pronounced  sentence  in  the  name  of  the 
most  Holy  Trinity.  Thus,  whether  innocent  or  guilty,  society  was 
rid  of  the  accused. 

Eemember  that  all  this  devilish  work  was  actually  going  on  in 
Scotland  less  than  two  hundred  years  ago,  at  which  time  one  of 
the  witch-prickers,  who  for  some  of  his  misdeeds  was  most  right- 
eously hanged,  confessed  on  the  gibbef  that  he  had  illegally  caused 
the  death  of  one  hundred  and  twenty  females  whom  he  had  been 
appointed  to  test  for  witchcraft." 

It  certainly  sounds  rather  as  if  the  judges  themselves  had  been 
bewitched,  when  we  read  the  accounts  of  the  successive  witch- 
manias  that  have  overspread  this  land.  For  instance,  at  the  close 
of  the  searching  reign  of  the  Long  Parliament,  a  list  was  dravm  up 
of  three  thousand  victims  who  had  actually  suffered  death  by  its 
command  on  the  most  trivial  accusations. 

Even  in  the  year  1716  it  is  recorded  that  a  woman  and  her 
daughter,  aged  nine,  were  hanged  at  Huntingdon  for  selling  their 
souls  to  the  devil,  and  raising  a  storm,  by  pulling  off  their  stockings 
and  making  a  lather  of  soap.  Six  years  later  another  luckless 
witch  was  executed  at  Dornoch  1  But  I  regret  to  say  that  my  own 
county — the  fair  Laich  of  Moray — was  the  last  to  learn  lessons  of 
mercy,  for  an  old  atone  near  the  town  of  Forres  marks  the  spot 
where  the  very  last  witch-hiiming  occiu^ed. 

It  is  a  remarkable  fact  that  the  commencement  of  this  diabolical 
persecution  should  have  been  coeval  with  the  invention  of  that 
great  civilizer,  the  printing-press,  one  of  whose  first  missions  was 
to  disseminate  a  stringent  bull  fulminated  against  witchcraft  by 


THE  EVIL  EYE.  261 

Pope  Innocent  VIII.,  wherein,  under  the  title  of  '*  Hammers  for 
Witches,"  he  minutely  described  how  all  such  might  he  recognized, 
and  how  punished.  The  flame  thus  kindled  spread  like  wild-fire ; 
nor  did  the  Eeformation  in  any  way  lessen  the  evil. 

It  was  not  till  the  year  1735  that  the  penal  statutes  against 
witchcraft  were  formally  repealed,  a  measure  decried  by  many  of 
the  clergy  and  other  respected  members  of  the  community  as  direct 
disobedience  to  the  Levitical  command,  that  no  witch  should  be 
suffered  to  live.  When  the  reign  of  fire  and  faggot  was  thus  finally 
abolished,  it  was  calculated  that  witJdn  three  hundred  years^  upwards 
of  thirty  thousand  people  had  been  put  to  death  in  England  alone 
on  the  charge  of  sorcery,  while  in  Germany  the  number  of  victims 
could  not  have  been  less  than  one  hundred  thousand  I  Even  such 
as  were  acquitted  would  in  many  cases  have  preferred  death,  as  the 
mere  suspicion  seems  to  have  placed  them  beyond  the  pale  of 
human  sympathy.  They  were  outcasts  for  ever,  hunted  and  cursed 
by  all,  save  those  who  needed  their  arts,  every  conceivable  form  of 
evil  being  attributed  to  the  agency  of  **  The  Devil  and  his  Haggs." 

Now,  as  if  penitent  for  past  cruelty,  the  law  does  what  it  can  to 
protect  those  accused  of  such  unholy  deeds ;  for  instance,  in  the 
autumn  of  1871  a  case  (by  no  means  exceptional)  was  tried  before 
the  sheriff,  at  Stomoway,  for  defamation,  a  man  having  formally 
accused  a  whole  family  of  having  by  witchcraft  stolen  the  milk 
from  his  cows.  He  stuck  to  his  belief,  and  was  fined  five  shillings 
and  costs. 

Still  more  frequent  is  the  accusation  of  having  wilfully  cast  the 
evil  eye  on  a  neighbour's  goods ;  and  our  northern  sheriffs  have  to 
decide  many  a  case  for  slander  and  defamation,  all  turning  on  some 
such  vague  accusation  of  witchcraft  For  the  dread  of  the  evil  eye 
is  just  as  great  here  as  in  the  far  East ;  and  any  one  reputed  to 
possess  it,  is  shunned  as  a  living  plague.  Quite  recently,  I  knew 
an  instance  of  the  people  on  the  beautiful  west  coast  of  Koss-shire 
refusing  to  let  a  woman  settle  among  them ;  and  they  even  came 
to  the  proprietor  to  request  that  he  would  not  give  her  a  stance  (/.  e. 
an  allotment),  because  they  declared  she  had  wicked  eyes.  To  us, 
the  young  woman  and  her  eyes  seemed  rather  comely  and  kindly. 


262  IN   THE  HEBRIDES. 

This  certainly  must  be  an  unpleasant  faculty  for  its  possessor. 
I  was  told  by  a  very  clever  schoolmaster  in  the  same  district,  that 
he  had  often  gone  fishing  with  one  of  his  friends,  a  very  good 
fellow,  but  one  who  was  reputed  to  possess  it  inyoluntarily.  All 
the  other  men  in  the  boat  would  watch  him,  and  when  they  had  a 
fish  on  their  lines,  would  try  to  draw  it  in  secretly,  for  so  surely  as 
he  observed  them,  their  fish  would  get  away. 

We  know  on  how  many  of  our  north-countiy  farms  the  gude-wife 
who  is  busy  at  her  churn  or  other  household  work,  will  bustle 
away  her  goods  at  the  approach  of  any  dubious  stranger,  because 
she  knows  that  there  are  certain  people  whose  presence  will  prevent 
the  butter  from  coming,  or  the  cakes  from  baking. 

We  know,  too,  how  vexed  a  hen-wife  would  be  should  she  catch 
us  counting  her  chickens ;  and  as  to  the  experiment  of  counting  a 
string  of  fish-wives,  it  would  be  rash  indeed  to  try  it,  for  dire  would 
be  the  storm  of  tongues  I  Should  you  be  cruel  enough  to  count 
the  fishers  as  they  get  into  their  boat,  they  will  probably  refuse  to 
go  to  sea  that  night,  after  so  evil  an  omen.  This,  however,  arises 
rather  from  the  old  dread  of  numbering  the  people,  than  &om  fear 
of  the  evil  eye. 

In  the  autumn  of  1880  Mr.  Eraser  of  Kilmuir,  in  Skye,  received 
a  letter  signed  by  the  most  influential  members  of  the  Free  Church 
at  Uig,  complaining  of  a  family — ^a  mother  and  five  daughters — who 
"  by  evil  arts  take  the  milk  from  the  neighbours'  cows. "  One  woman 
went  and  spoke  very  solemnly  to  the  ofEenders  concerning  their 
great  sin,  and  their  consciences  must  have  smitten  them,  for  when 
the  reprover  went  home,  the  cows  were  giving  their  milk  all  right. 
But  very  soon  the  charm  must  have  been  laid  on  again,  for  the 
cows  ceased  giving  milk. 

On  receiving  the  document,  the  proprietor,  who  was  on  board 
his  yacht,  asked  the  skipper  what  he  thought  about  it  The  latter 
replied  that  "  he  couldn't  say.  His  own  cow  had  recently  been 
thus  charmed,  but  he  knew  another  skeely  woman,  and  sent  for  her. 
She  came,  and  made  a  sunwise  turn  round  the  cow,  and  twined  red 
worsted  in  its  tail,  and  the  milk  came  back!  For  this  he  paid  her 
five  shillings,  but  she  told  him  that  her  charm  would  only  work  foe 


WITCH-TREASON  AT  FORRES.  263 

throe  months,  and  after  that,  if  the  cow  onght  still  to  be  giving 
milk,  she  must  be  sent  for  again.'' 

Again,  in  1881,  an  office-bearer  in  the  Free  Church  at  Uig  went 
to  a  Justice  of  the  Peace  to  make  affirmation  on  oath,  that  every- 
thing  he  had  on  his  lands  was  bewitched  by  a  woman  who  was  his 
neighbour,  and  should  be  sharply  dealt  with  at  once.  The  J. P., 
however,  refused  to  interfere. 

That  the  will  to  work  mischief  is  not  always  lacking,  is  shown 
by  the  extraordinary  number  of  cases,  scattered  all  over  Britain,  in 
which  it  has  been  proved  that  malevolent  persons  have  made  some 
sort  of  image  to  represent  some  neighbour,  and  have  then  stuck  it 
full  of  pins,  with  a  fuU  conviction  that  they  would  theroby  compass 
his  death.  ^ 

It  sounds  like  a  story  of  the  middle  ages  to  hear  of  women  sitting 
by  their  own  fireside  modelling  images  of  wax  in  order  that  as 
these  slowly  melt,  so  he  to  whom  they  wish  evil  may  likewise  fade 
away.  Yet  such  a  case  actually  came  under  our  notice  in  the  good 
town  of  Inverness,  where  an  old  woman  having  conceived  a  violent 
hatred  to  her  spiritual  pastor  on  account  of  his  refusing  her  admis- 
sion to  the  Holy  Communion,  took  this  method  of  destroying  him !  1 

1  In  a  quaiat  old  volume  called '  Satan's  Invisible  World  Discovered,'  there 
b  related  the  history  of  how  **  King  Duff,  the  seventy-eighth  King  of  Scot- 
land, was  bewitched."  **  The  suspicion  that  his  illness  was  due  to  witchcraft 
arose  from  an  unusual  sweating  he  was  under,  his  body  pining  and  withering 
away  by  little  and  little,  and  his  strength  failing  day  by  day. 

"  Presently  news  came  to  the  Court  that  night-meetings  were  kept  at  Forres, 
a  town  in  Moray,  for  taking  away  the  life  of  the  King.  Whereupon  trusty 
and  faithful  men  were  sent  away  to  one  Donald,  Governor  of  the  CasUe  there, 
in  whom  the  King  had  the  greatest  trust  and  confidence.  This  man  discovered 
that  a  certain  young  woman,  whose  mother  was  reported  to  be  skilful  in  this 
black  art,  had  spoken  some  rash  words  anent  the  King's  sickness,  declaring 
that  within  a  few  days  his  life  would  be  at  an  end. 

*'  Some  of  the  guard  being  sent,  found  the  lass's  mother,  with  some  haggs 
such  as  herself,  roasting  before  a  small,  moderate  fire,  the  King's  picture  made 
of  wax.  The^design  of  this  horrid  act  was,  that  as  the  wax  by  little  and  little 
did  melt  away,  so  the  King's  body,  by  a  continual  sweating,  might  at  last 
totally  decay.  The  waxen  images  being  found  and  broken,  and  these  old 
baggs  punished  with  death,  the  King  did  in  that  same  moment  recover." 


264  IN   THE  HEBRIDES. 

It  80  happened  that  at  that  time  he  fell  into  very  bad  health,  and 
as  the  old  lady  watched  him  growing  gradually  weaker  and  weaker, 
she  was  fully  satisfied  that  her  charm  was  working  effectually. 
She  was,  however,  doomed  to  disappointment,  as  her  image  was 
discovered  and  betrayed ;  and  her  spell  being  broken,  the  victim 
rapidly  recovered  1 

Two  similar  instances  came  under  our  notice  in  the  same  neigh- 
bourhood. Thus  at  Kirkhill  near  Beauly,  in  the  year  1870,  a 
farmer  had  occasion  to  dismiss  a  man  summarily  from  his  employ- 
ment The  man  owed  him  a  grudge,  and  by  way  of  avenging  him- 
self, he  made  an  image  of  clay  which  he  buried  near  the  farmer's 
house,  hoping  that  as  the  rains  washed  away  the  clay,  his  enemy 
would  pine  and  die.  Sure  enough  he  did  pine,  and  became  very 
sickly  indeed ;  when  lo  !  one  day,  as  he  was  digging  in  his  field  he 
found  this  image,  and  at  once  suspected  it^  object,  and  the  mis- 
creant who  had  placed  it  there ;  so  wroth  was  he,  that  it  needed 
all  the  persuasive  eloquence  of  his  neighbours  to  prevent  his  at 
once  carrying  the  case  before  his  landlord.  Curiously  enough,  he 
is  said  to  have  recovered  from  that  hour  ! 

Again,  also  in  Beauly,  we  heard  of  a  man  slowly  dying  without 
any  apparent  cause.  His  home  was  ruled  by  a  woman  of  violent 
temper.  "  Ou  !  she  was  a  wild  woman  ! "  said  my  informant. 
The  neighbours  at  last  became  convinced  that  she  was  compassing 
his  death  by  evil  arts,  and  sought  in  every  direction  for  some  wax 
or  clay  image.  They  found  she  had  been  sticking  very  suspicious 
lumps  of  clay  on  divers  trees.  However,  they  sought  in  vain  for 
any  more  definite  proof  of  guilt,  and  in  due  time  the  sick  man 
died. 

In  Strathspey  we  were  also  told  in  whispered  tones  of  this 
terrible  form  of  witchcraft,  as  of  a  thing  not  to  be  doubted,  and 
here  the  witches  gave  piquancy  to  their  crime  by  sticking  pins  into 
the  clay  doll,  before  laying  it  in  some  running  stream,  where  it 
may  slowly  but  surely  melt  away.  A  calfs  heart  stuck  full  of  pins 
is  also  accounted  a  sure  means  of  disposing  of  a  foe.  A  sick  person 
having  reason  to  attribute  his  illness  to  any  such  supernatural  cause, 
of  course  appeals  to  some  local  wise  woman.     Amongst  the  sapient 


WIZARD   SPELLS.  265 

cures  suggested  will  probably  be  a  poultice  of  warm  cow-dung — a 
nice  recipe,  quite  d  la  Umdoo  I 

It  seems  that  these  malpractices  are  neither  a  thing  of  the  past, 
nor  peculiar  to  the  old  wives  of  Scotland.  Mackay,  writiag  in 
1841,  mentions  many  cases  of  >vitchci'aft  having  come  under  his 
notice  in  Hastings,  Lincoln, ^and  Huntingdon ;  most  especially  one 
of  a  cunning  man  whose  ordinary  business  it  was  to  mould  wax 
images  stuck  full  of  pins,  in  order  to  destroy  such  persons  as  annoyed 
his  customers  !  He  also  tells  of  a  wizard  near  Tunbridge  Wells 
who  was  constantly  consulted  by  persons  of  the  highest  rank. 

There  is  no  need,  however,  to  look  back  for  such  cases.  So 
lately  as  May  '1872,  two  onions,  stuck  full  of  pins,  and  ticketed 
with  the  name  of  the  intended  victim,  were  found  suspended  in 
the  chimney  of  a  public-house  at  the  village  of  Eockwellgreen, 
Somersetshire;  showing  that  the  old  tricks  are  not  forgotten 
there. 

Our  police  can  tell  us  that  such  instances  are  by  no  means  unique, 
and  that  this  superstition,  in  many  varying  forms,  is  practised  in 
Devonshire,  and  in  the  northern  counties  of  England.  About 
fifty  years  ago,  a  Yorkshire  [farmer  consulted  a  wizard  doctor  in 
South  Durham,  concerning  heavy  losses  of  cattle.  Of  course  the 
murrain  was  attributed  to  witchcraft,  so  the  remedy  to  be  applied 
was  a  counter-spell.  The  farmer  was  directed  to  bolt  ard  bar  every 
window,  to  keep  off  the  warlocks.  He  was  to  take  the  heart  of 
one  of  his  dead  oxen,  and  stick  into  it  nine  new  nails,  nine  new 
pins,  and  nine  new  needles,  and  then  slowly  bum  it  in  a  fire  of 
rowan-tree  wood,  just  before  midnight,  when  a  certain  verse  from 
the  Bible  was  to  be  pronounced  over  the  flames,  as  an  incantation. 
AU  this  was  duly  observed.  The  enraged  spirits  rapped  and 
hammered  furiously  at  all  the  bolted  windows,  but  the  spell  was 
broken,  and  from  that  hour  the  plague  was  stayed.^ 

1  A  curious  ibmily  likeness  pervades  the  witchcraft  practised  in  divers  lands. 
Moulding  a  waxen  image  in  the  likeness  of  a  foe,  and  calling  it  by  his  name 
is  a  common  practice  in  Abyssinia. 

We  find  it  again  in  India,  where,  in  the  TinneveUy  district,  wooden  images 
stack  full  of  sliarp  nails  are  buried  near  the  house  of  a  foe. 


266  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

Among  the  little  devices  of  modem  Scotch  witches,  we  know  of 
a  certain  cat  having  been  killed  and  coffined,  as  a  symbol  likely  to 
compass  the  death  of  a  lady  in  Perthshire  who  had  incurred  the 
ill-will  of  some  miscreant.  The  man  who  found  this  unlucky  cat 
was  very  much  disturbed  in  his  mind,  evidently  considering  it  very 
dangerous.  He  was  fully  aware  of  its  meaning,  so  it  was  probably 
by  no  means  a  unique  instance. 

Poor  cats  !  they  seem  to  be  always  associated  with  witchery  and 
divination,  and  very  hard  lines  they  get.  One  revolting  form  of 
augury  long  in  use  in  the  Isles,  was  that  of  half  roasting  a  live  cat, 
in  the  belief  that  its  screams  would  attract  the  king  of  cats,  who 
could  reveal  all  hidden  knowledge,  as  the  price  of  poor  pussy's 
release. 

They  also  occupy  a  very  grave  place  in  the  records  of  James  VI., 
where,  in  the  trial  of  the  witches  of  Tranent,  two  luckless  old 
women  confessed  to  having  christened  cats  by  the  name  of  Anne  of 
Denmark  and  having  thrown  them  into  the  sea,  in  order  to  raise 
such  storms  as  might  impede  her  voyage.  Thus  it  came  to  pass 
tbat  by  their  evil  arts,  a  boat  laden  with  gifts  and  jewels  for  the 
Queen,  was  wrecked  in  the  Firth  of  Forth.  A  few  years  later, 
another  witch  confessed  to  having  christened  a  cat  by  the  Queen's 
name,  and  passed  it  nine  times  through  the  iron  gate  of  Seaton, 
and  then  cast  it  to  the  devil.  For  this,  and  similar  acts,  she  and 
four  other  persons  were  burnt  alive  !  ! 

Even  to  this  day  we  are  sometimes  startled  to  find  persons  believ- 
ing, not  only  that  certain  animals  are  witches  in  disguise,  but  that 
the  dead  have  returned  to  earth  in  these  strange  forms  !  I  have 
heard  such  stories  whispered  with  bated  breath,  on  our  own  High- 

In  Hawaii  the  witch- women  used  to  string  together  the  oily  ku-km  nuts, 
and,  calling  them  by  the  name  of  their  victim,  lighted  them,  and  let  them 
gmoulder  slowly,  to  typify  the  wasting  away  of  their  representative. 

In  Japan  a  jealous  woman  makes  an  image  of  straw  to  represent  her  lover, 
and  in  the  dead  of  night  goes  to  one  of  the  sacred  trees  dedicated  to  the 
Shinto  gods.  She  nails  the  image  to  the  tree,  praying  the  gods  to  impnte  the 
sacrilege  to  her  faithless  lover,  and  vowing  to  remove  them  on  his  death.  She 
returns  again  and  again,  to  diive  in  fresh  nails. 


CELTIC  TRANSMIGRATION.  267 

land  hills,  and  the  same  traditions  are  common  in  the  wilds  of 
Cornwall,  where  we  heard  of  a  gamekeeper  positively  refusing  to 
fire  at  a  fox  that  haunted  a  certain  house,  and  came  constantly 
baying  under  the  windows.  He  was  not  deterred  by  any  fox-hunt- 
ing scruples,  but  by  the  conviction  that  the  animal  was  really  *^  poor 
Mr.  Frank,"  whose  spirit  returned  to  an  earthly  form,  sometimes 
in  the  form  of  a  hare,  sometimes  as  a  black-cock,  but  most  often  as 
a  fox.     No  Brahmin  could  have  been  more  decided  in  his  views. 

A  quaint  trace  of  the  old  Druidical  teaching  of  transmigration, 
is  the  notion,  not  yet  wholly  extinct,  that  when  a  man  is  slowly 
lingering  away  in  consumption,  the  fairies  are  on  the  watch  to  steal 
his  soul,  that  they  may  therewith  give  life  to  some  other  body. 
To  prevent  this,  old  wives  are  often  anxious  to  cut  the  nails  of  the 
sufferer,  that  they  may  tie  up  the  parings  in  a  bit  of  rag,  and  wave 
this  precious  charm  thrice  round  his  head,  deisul  I 

That  firm  faith  in  the  immortality  of  the  soul  undoubtedly  found 
a  place  in  the  Celtic  creed,  is,  I  suppose,  beyond  question :  in  fact 
Caesar  mentions  it  as  one  of  the  tenets  of  the  Druids.  In  the 
tumuli  of  Britain,  as  well  as  those  of  India,  skeletons  of  animals 
have  been  found  as  if  placed  ready  for  food ;  swords  also  that 
would  have  been  precious  to  the  living,  were  buried  with  the  dead, 
that  they  might  not  be  left  defenceless  on  awakening. 

The  old  Gauls  buried  written  statements  of  accounts  and  claims 
of  debts,  that  they  might  be  carried  on  in  the  next  life  ;  and  so 
well  was  this  creed  acted  upon,  that  men  would  lend  one  another 
money,  trusting  to  repayment  when  they  met  in  some  new  phase  of 
existence ! 

I  doubt  whether  modern  Hindoos  would  be  equally  trusting,  or 
the  Pharisees  of  olden  days  either,  of  whom  it  is  said  that  they  too 
held  the  doctrine  of  transmigration.  (Certainly  we  may  infer  that 
they  did  so,  from  the  readiness  with  which  they  suggested  that 
Christ  was  merely  a  new  incarnation  of  Elijah,  Jeremiah,  or  one  of 
the  prophets,  and  also  from  that  strange  question  respecting  the 
man  who  was  bom  blind,  "  Did  thU  man  sin,  or  his  parents,  that 
be  was  horn  blind  1 ") 

Time  and  space  alike  fail  to  touch  on  divers  local  superstitions. 


268  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

I  may,  however,  mention  one  more  quaint  old  fret,  "which  may 
have  sprung  from  Scriptural  tradition,  or  perhaps  may  own  a  more 
remote  origin,  namely,  that  curious  objection  to  enter  a  house  "  empty, 
swept,  and  garnished,"  which  exists  in  several  of  our  northern 
counties.  The  out-going  tenant,  whose  officious  care  should  extend 
to  cleaning  the  floor,  would  be  held  guilty  of  a  most  unneighbourly 
act  to  the  new-comer.  The  more  dirt  and  litter  he  leaves  about, 
the  better  pleased  is  his  successor.  My  attention  was  first  called 
to  this  fact,  on  one  occasion  when  a  tidy  housekeeper  at ''  the  big 
house  "  had  caused  a  cottage  close  by  to  be  scrubbed  before  the 
arrival  of  the  new  tenant,  whose  look  of  dismay  on  glancing  round, 
rather  astonished  her.  "  Oh  ! "  said  the  woman,  "  I  would  rather 
have  found  the  dirtiest  house  in  the  country  than  this  clean  floor !  " 
The  idea  is,  that  all  the  new-comer's  luck  has  been  swept  out. 

Shortly  afterwards,  a  house  in  the  same  district  (Spcyside)  was 
changing  hands ;  the  old  housekeeper  was  most  anxious  to  have 
everything  in  perfect  order  for  its  new  master,  but  nothing  would 
induce  her  to  have  the  floors  cleaned  till  he  should  have  taken 
possession.  On  further  inquiry  we  found  the  same  superstition  to 
be  a  matter  of  general  acceptance  throughout  Banflshire,  Kairn,  and 
the  neighbouring  districts,  as  also  in  Perthshire. 

There  is  also  a  lingering  belief  in  the  ill-luck  of  taking  a  farm 
from  which  the  previous  tenant  has  been  ejected  against  his  will, 
lest  a  curse  should  go  with  the  land — a  curse  which  is  expressed 
by  a  peculiar  Gaelic  word,  eirthear.  And  it  was  till  very  recently 
quite  a  natural  question  to  inquire  whether  any  such  grudge  was 
attached  to  a  farm,  and  if  so,  the  bargain  constantly  fell  to  the 
ground. 

This  feeling  accounts  for  such  entries  in  the  transfer  of  land  as 
that  whereby,  in  1698,  Alexander  Kinnaird,  in  a  legal  document, 
making  over  the  lands  of  Culbyn  to  Duff  of  Drummuir,  specifies 
twice  over  that  lie  gives  the  bargain  his  goodwill  and  blessing.  Not 
that  it  proved  worth  much,  as  the  estate  was  resold  forty  years 
later,  and  very  soon  after,  was  overwhelmed  with  that  mysterious 
sandstorm,  which  changed  the  fertile  lands  into  the  worthless  desert 
we  know  so  welL 


THE  LONQ  ISLAND.  269 


CHAPTER  IX. 


THB  OUTER  HEBRIDES. 


The  Longlttland — Start  for  Harris—St.  Clement's  Gathedral—Tarbert— Hand- 
mills— The.Thamia—Fincastle—Stomoway— Loch  Maddy  Market— North 
Uist—Machars— Shell-fish  and  Lobsters— Fords— Driftwood— Cornish 
Blessings— Benbecula— South  Uist— Dismal  Homes — Wild  Fowl— Barra 
— Kisimul  Castle — Briskay— Wreckers— South  Bemera  Lighthouse — 
Mingalay. 

Haying  as  jet  had  but  a  distant  view  of  the  Outer  Hebrides,  we 
determined  that  the  next  cruise  of  the  Gannet  should  be  in  their 
direction.  The  principal  islands  included  un<ler  this  head  are 
Lewis  and  Harris,  which  are  in  fact  one  island,  being  connected  by 
a  narrow  neck  of  land,  bearing  the  significant  nauio  of  Tarbert. 
liewis  and  Harris  are  generally  known  in  the  group  as  '*  The  Long 
Island/'  and  claim  the  dignity  of  being  the  third  in  eize  of  the 
British  Isles.  Its  population  in  1881  was  28,339  persons,  of 
whom  upwards  of  26,000  speak  their  Gaelic  mother  tongue,  and 
comparatively  few  "  have  the  English." 

South  of  "  The  I<iews,"  which  is  another  name  commonly  applied 
to  the  Long  Island,  and  separated  from  it  by  the  deep  Sound  of 
Harris,  stretches  a  long  line  of  low,  dull  islands,  which  also  are 
practically  one,  being  all  so  connected  by  fords,  that  at  low  tide 
you  might  walk  dry-footed  from  the  northernmost  to  the  southern- 
most point,  whereas  at  high  tide  they  are  divided  by  deep  arms  of 


270  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

the  sea,  several  miles  in  width.  These  are  the  Isles  of  North  Uist, 
Baleshare,  Grimsay,  Kona,  Benbecula,  and  South  Uist,  together 
with  various  intermediate  islets.  Sometimes  the  term  Long 
Island  is  applied  collectively  to  all  these,  as  well  as  to  the  Lews. 

Still  further  south  lie  the  group  known  as  "  The  Barra  Isles," — 
grand  isolated  masses  of  granitic  rock,  rising  precipitously  from  the 
wild  open  ocean. 

If  you  glance  at  a  map  of  the  Isles,  you  cannot  fail  to  notice  how 
very  peculiar  is  the  appearance  of  this  great  chain  of  islands,  which, 
from  Barra  Head  on  the  extreme  south,  to  the  Butt  of  Lewis  in  the 
far  north,  form  a  continuous  line  for  about  120  miles.  On  the  map 
they  bear  an  extraordinary  resemblance  to  a  skeleton  fish  or  reptile, 
of  which  Lewis  forms  the  great  head,  while  the  other  isles — gradu- 
ally diminishing  in  size,  and  all  intersected  by  fresh-water  lochs  and 
salt  sea  fiords — form  the  spine  and  bones. 

Taking  advantage  of  a  favouring  gale,  we  started  from  the  green 
shores  of  Kilmuir,  and  had  a  glorious  sail  to  Harris,  a  picturesque 
isle,  whose  mountains  rise  to  about  3000  feet  We  anchored  at 
Eodel  (or,  as  it  used  to  be  spelt,  Kowadill),  where  once  flourished 
a  noted  monastery,  one  of  twenty-eight  which  were  established  in 
Scotland  by  the  Canons  Eegular  of  St.  Augustine,  who,  in  later 
years,  supplanted  the  more  ancient  and  simple  establishment  of  the 
Culdees. 

This  monastery  of  Rowadill  seems  to  have  been  the  ecclesiastical 
superior  of  the  various  religious  houses  and  convents  which  once 
were  scattered  over  these  isles — the  sites  of  certain  nunneries  being 
still  pointed  out  as  the  "  Teagh  nan  cailichan  dhu,"  L  e.  "  the  houses 
of  the  black  old  women,"  in  allusion  to  the  black  dress  of  their 
order. 

The  fine  square  tower  of  the  old  church — St.  Clement's  Cathe- 
dral— at  once  drew  us  thither.  It  is  a  cniciform  building — Early 
English  on  Norman  foundations,  with  a  fine  east  window  and  some 
quaint  bits  of  carving.  The  tower  is  said  to  be  the  oldest  building 
in  Scotland,  except  part  of  St.  Mungo's  Cathedral  at  Glasgow,  and 
those  who  doubt  the  antiquity  of  the  kilt  as  now  worn,  may  here 
aee  a  most  unmistakable  sculpture  of  the  garb  of  old  Gaul.     I  sup- 


OLD  CHURCH  AT  RODEL.  271 

poee  the  use  of  tartan  in  remote  ages  was  well  proven,  even  before 
the  appearance  of  that  quaint  old  metrical  versionof  the  Scriptures, 
still  preserved  at  Glasgow,  which  told  how 

**  Jacob  made  for  his  son  Josey, 
A  tartan  coat  to  keep  him  cosy  "  ! 

We  had  heard  much  of  the  beautiful  stones  in  the  old  church- 
yard, but  sought  for  them  in  vain  amid  such  a  crop  oi  nettles  as 
I  never  saw  elsewhere.  It  is  a  picturesque  spot  notwithstanding  ; 
and  when,  among  the  golden  brackens  and  brambly  tangles,  we 
found  a  rich  harvest  of  ripe,  delicious  blackberries,  we  were  content 
to  feast  like  children,  and  were  comforted  for  the  disappearance  of 
the  old  gravestones  beneath  so  pleasant  a  wilderness. 

This  was  the  burial-place  of  certain  old  MacLeods  of  Harris, 
whose  monuments  are  inside  the  church.  One,  a  knight  in  armour 
with  two-handed  broadsword.  Another  sleeps  in  his  shirt  of  mail 
and  high-peaked  helmet,  his  feet  resting  on  his  dogs.  We  could 
not  get  the  key  of  the  church,  so  failed  to  see  the  tombs  of  the  isle 
and  ocean  lords.  The  tombs  of  the  Vikings  are  distinguished  from 
those  of  the  mighty  hunters,  by  their  having  a  galley  engraven  near 
the  hilt  of  the  sword,  whereas  the  latter  almost  invariably  have 
deer  and  hounds  in  fiill  cry,  careering  round  them.  One  old  grave- 
stone here  tells  of  a  Sir  Donald  MacLeod  of  Bemeray,  who  married 
his  fourth  wife  when  he  was  past  eighty,  and  left  a  numerous  family 
by  her !  ^ 

We  had  also  wished  to  see  certain  old  Ficts'  forts,  or  duns,  which 
we  knew  existed  on  various  hill-tops  in  the  neighbourhood.  They 
are  simply  circles  of  large  stones  piled  up  without  cement,  and 
always  placed  within  sight  of  one  another,  to  act  as  alarm-posts. 
The  people  say  that  a  curious  building  of  this  form  lies  under  deep 
water,  within  a  few  yards  of  the  shore — and  on  a  clear  day  they 
can  see  it  distinctly  near  the  village  of  Hodel.  However,  as" the 
wind  was  favourable,  we  went  on  to  Tarbert,  a  name  which  applies 
to  a  strip  of  land  between  two  waters.^ 

It  was  nearly  dark  when  we  anchored,  but  at  daybreak  we  went 
ashore.     Five  minutes'  walk  took  us  across  the  narrow  neck  of 

>  Tar-bert~litenlly,  Draw-boat. 


272  IN    THE   HEBRIDES. 

land  to  the  other  side  of  the  coast,  and  we  were  duly  edified  by  the 
primitive  modes  of  agriculture.  Here  and  there,  in  the  middle  of 
morass  or  peat-moss,  some  small  scraps  of  arable  land  are  carefully 
cultivated  ;  wretched  little  patches  of  potatoes,  oats,  or  barley, 
struggling  for  existence  wherever  a  possible  comer  has  been  found, 
in  the  midst  of  rock  and  heather.  It  seems  like  lighting  against 
nature  to  try  and  force  her  to  grow  corn  on  land  which  she  has  so 
distinctly  set  apart  for  pasture.  In  point  of  fact,  Harris  is  almost 
entirely  resigned  to  deer. 

Such  morsels  of  ground  as  are  under  cultivation  can  only  yield 
their  miserable  crop  if  freely  manured  every  year  with  sea- ware,  and 
even  this  supply  is  so  scanty,  that  many  of  the  poor  crofters  have 
to  face  the  danger  of  stormy  seas,  and  go  all  the  way  to  Skye  to 
obtain  a  boat-load.^ 

In  some  of  the  humble  turf  huts  hereabouts  you  may  still  chance 
to  see  a  specimen  of  the  old  quern  or  handmill,  consisting  of  two 
hard  gritty  grindstones,  laid  horizontally  one  above  the  other ;  the 
grain  is  poured  between  them,  through  a  hole  in  the  centre  of  the 
upper  stone,  which  is  made  to  revolve  rapidly  by  a  wooden  handle. 
I  suppose  this  was  somewhat  akin  to  the  old  English  handmill  or 
Thamis,  the  wood  of  which  was  wont  to  ignite  in  the  hand  of  a 
swift  worker,  thus  giving  rise  to  the  saying,  concerning  an  idler, 
that  "  ke  would  never  set  the  Thamis  on  fire,"  a  proverb  often 
quoted  with  small  thoughts  of  its  origin. 

It  is  strange  to  think  that  these  poor  little  hand  mills  should  ever 
have  been  an  object  of  jealousy  to  our  legislators.  Yet  in  old  days 
various  laws  were  passed  advising  the  lairds  to  compel  their  tenants 
to  bring  their  grain  to  the  water-mills ;  and  also  empowering  the 
miller  to  search  out  and  break  any  querns  he  could  find,  as  being 
machines  that  defraud  him  of  his  toll.     So  far  back  as  the  thirteenth 

^ ''  The  land  in  North  Harris  was  only  peat,  which  had  to  be  manured  every 
year  with  sea- ware  to  make  it  productive.  The  sea- ware  he  had  to  go  for  to 
Skye  in  a  small  boat,  at  great  risk,  and  when  he  got  safely  home  with  his 
cargo  in  the  evening,  he  felt  as  happy  as  if  he  had  landed  a  cargo  of  gold. 
The  sea- ware  on  their  own  coast  was  not  sufficient  for  them.  They  might  get 
it  at  the  Sound  of  Harris,  but  it  was  as  dangerous  to  go  there  as  to  Skye." — 
Crofter's  Evidence  before  the  Royal  Commission,  June  1883. 


WAULKINa  CLOTH.  273 

century,  the  laws  of  Alexander  III.  proyide  that  no  man  shall 
presume  to  grind  quheit,  maishloch^  or  rye  with  handmill,  except  he 
be  compelled  by  storm ;  and  even  in  this  case  he  is  bound  to  pay  a 
certain  tax  to  the  miller ! 

The  modern  miller  who  cares  to  behold  his  ancient  rivals  may 
see  good  specimens  in  our  antiquarian  museums,  without  a  voyage 
to  those  remote  corners  of  the  earth,  but  it  is  only  here  that  he 
may  still  see  them  in  active  work,  and  hear  the  wild  plaintive  songs 
with  which  '*  the  two  women  grinding  at  the  mill "  wile  away  the 
monotonous  hours. 

Wilder  still  are  the  songs  sung  by  a  whole  troop  of  lassies  when 
toaulking  cloth ;  that  is,  when  a  dozen  women  sit  on  the  ground,  in 
two  rows,  feet  to  feet,  with  a  ribbed  woollen  board  between  them, 
whereon  is  laid  the  newly-woven  uwoollen  web ;  then,  with  their 
bare  feet,  the  women  work  the  cloth  to  and  fro,  till  they  have  rolled 
it  to  a  right  consistency,  their  song  growing  louder  and  louder  as 
they  warm  to  their  work,  so  that  a  casual  observer  is  extremely  apt 
to  imagine  that  he  has  suddenly  stumbled  on  the  inmates  of  some 
private  lunatic  asylum. 

The  excellence  of  "Harris  tweed"  and  **  Harris  stockings  "  is 
well  known  on  the  mainland,  as,  thanks  to  the  fostering  care  of 
Lady  Dunmore  and  Mrs.  Thomas,  these  manufactures  have  become 
an  organized  industry,  whereby  most  of  the  women  of  Harris  earn 
their  living.  It  is  the  means  of  circulating  several  thousand  pounds 
a  year  on  the  isle,  and  forms  a  very  important  item  in  the  support 
of  the  people,  whose  farming  is  by  no  means  sufficient  for  their 
needs ; — no  wonder  when  we  learn  that  in  one  district  of  Harris  620 
families  are  now  living  on  the  tiny  crofts  held  by  280  tenants ! 
Here,  as  elsewhere,  most  of  the  men  are  chiefly  dependent  on  their 
precarious  earnings  at  the  cod,  ling,  or  lobster  fisheries,  or  the 
herring  fishery  on  the  east  coast ;  a  considerable  number  also  serve 
in  the  Naval  Eeserve,  or  the  Inverness  Militia,  and  their  pay,  in 
many  cases,  is  invested  in  the  purchase  of  wool,  which  the  women 
spin  and  weave  in  their  own  homes. 

To  this  industry,  therefore,  is  due  much  of  such  comfort  as  we 
may  see  by  a  peep  into  some  of  their  little  homes. 


274  IS  THE  HEBRIDES. 

Finding  that  the  inn  owned  a  dog-cart  (a  wonderful  old  trap, 
mended  at  all  points,  but  still  capable  of  carrying  us  without  undue 
danger),  we  hired  it,  and  started  on  a  long  diive  to  the  interior  of 
the  island. 

We  drove  twelve  miles  through  wild  and  most  beautiful  scenery  ; 
past  the  dark  waters  of  Bonaveneta  Loch,  and  halting  in  Glen 
Movig,  to  secure  a  rapid  sketch  of  a  grand  dark  hill  which  stands 
up  almost  precipitously  from  the  valley.  The  road  lay  between 
wild  moorland  and  mountain  on  the  one  hand,  and  the  sea  on  the 
other ;  all  glorified  by  floods  of  sunshine  which  gleamed  on  the 
yellow  sands  of  Laskantyra,  transforming  them  to  fields  of  gold. 
Scarcely  a  ripple  disturbed  the  broad  surface  of  the  calm  ocean, 
which  broke  lazily  in  tiny  wavelets,  while  the  dark  peat-moss 
revealed  tracts  of  golden  brown,  and  green,  and  purple,  such  as  no 
one  could  deem  possible  who  only  saw  such  scenes  on  the  dull 
monotonously  grey  days  so  common  to  our  northern  skies. 

In  the  wildest  spot  of  all  stands  Fincastle,^  a  grand  new  building, 
placed  in  such  a  valley  of  rocks  that  a  level  spot  had  to  be  blasted 
before  the  foundations  could  be  laid.  A  rocky  mountain  rises 
immediately  behind  the  house — a  rocky  salmon  river  on  one  side, 
and  a  rocky  bum  on  the  other,  always  rushing  and  tumbling  with 
ceaseless  noise ;  while  the  terrace  in  front  of  the  windows  is  a 
great  sea  wall,  against  which  the  waves  dash ;  and  the  *'  snorting 
sea-horses  "  and  the  river-kelpies  together  make  such  a  turmoil  as 
would  become  wearisome  to  any  ear  but  that  of  a  keen  fisher. 

To  the  ear  that  rejoices  in  the  stillness  of  a  great  calm,  as  the 
very  ideal  of  bliss,  such  ceaseless  sounds  of  tumultuous  waters  must, 
I  think,  be  sorely  trying.  But  it  may  be  that  what  wearies  the  ear 
and  brain  of  one  man  is  music  to  his  neighbour,  especially  if  that 
neighbour  is  a  whole-hearted  fisherman,  to  whom  the  tumbliog  and 
tossing  waters  suggest  the  silvery  fish  that  play  beneath  their 
depths. 

We  thought  it  a  graceful  compliment  to  Morayshire  that  the 
yellow  freestone  with  which  the  house  is  faced  had  all  been  brought 

^  Built  by  Lord  Dunmore,  the  late  proprietor.  Now  the  properly  of  Sir 
Edward  Scott. 


OATMEAL  DIET   minuS  MILK.  275 

from  oar  own  dear  Covesea  quarries.  Kot  that  there  is  any  lack  of 
good  building  material  in  Harris.  The  grey  whinstone  is  what 
masons  describe  as  *'  a  good  binding  rock ; "  and  there  is  fine  granite 
in  abundance. 

Attracted  by  the  green  beauty  of  the  rich  pasturage  on  every 
side  among  these  green  hills,  we  made  sure  of  a  delicious  bowl  of 
new  milk,  but  not  one  drop  was  to  be  obtained,  for  love  or  money. 
So  entirely  were  the  wild  deer  lords  of  the  situation,  that  there  was 
no  grass  to  spare  for  cows,  and  the  people  had  just  to  do  without 
milk.  Even  at  Tarbert  we  found  a  most  insufficient  allowance — a 
very  sore  privation  to  men,  women,  and  children,  whose  breakfast, 
dinner,  and  supper  consist  of  porridge  and  oat-cake.  Sometimes 
they  have  potatoes  instead  of  porridge,  but  rarely  both  at  the  same 
meal,  even  in  our  cottages  on  the  mainland. 

Let  any  one  who  is  inclined  to  think  lightly  of  cutting  oif  milk 
from  this  meagre  bill  of  fare,  just  try  himself  to  live  for  even  one 
week  on  nothing  but  oatmeal,  without  milk,  and  see  how  much  he 
enjoys  his  **  daily  bread  !  " 

But  here  we  touch  on  the  fringe  of  one  of  the  burning  questions 
of  the  day — the  right  or  wrong  of  the  very  existence  of  deer  forests 
— in  other  words,  the  maintenance  on  our  northern  isles  of  vast 
tracts  of  land  wholly  devoted  to  the  preservation  of  "  wild  beasts." 

The  Islanders  and  Highlanders  look  back  to  idyllic  days,  when 
these  wild  mountain  regions,  wherein  they  dare  not  now  set  foot, 
for  fear  of  disturbing  the  deer,  were  the  pastures  where  in  the  sweet 
summer  days  they  fed  their  flocks  and  herds — the  little  black  cattle, 
and  the  smaU  Highland  sheep,  which  were  regarded  almost  as 
individual  friends. 

Here  and  there  were  the  shielings — summer  homes  of  the  very 
simplest  construction  (mere  huts  of  turf  and  stone,  with  beds  of 
fragrant  heather),  which,  during  those  summer  months,  gave  shelter 
to  maids  and  matrons,  whose  pleasant  task  it  was  to  milk  the  kye 
and  the  little  ewes,  and  to  prepare  cheese  and  butter  for  the  market, 
filling  up  idle  moments  by  spinning  with  distafiE  and  spindle.  Those 
were  the  days  which  gave  rise  to  such  sweet  old  ballads  as  we  still 
love,  though  the  scenes  which  gave  them  birth  belong  to  a  lamented 

T  2 


276  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

past.     Such  songs  as  those  wherein  the  blithe  shepherd  tells  the 
secret  of  his  bliss : 

"  'Tie  to  woo  a  bonnie  lassie,  when  the  kye  come  hame." 

What  pretty  pastoral  pictures  are  suggested  by 

*'  Sae  sweet  the  lassie  sung  i'  the  bucht,  milking  the  ewes  ** ; 

or  by  such  invitations  as, 

"  Ca'  the  ewes  to  the  faulds,  Jamie,  wi'  me  "  ; 
or, 

'*  Will  ye  come  to  the «we-bucht8,  Marion?  " 

or,  most  melodious  of  all, 

**  Ca'  the  ewes  to  the  knowes, 
Ca'  them  where  the  heather  grows, 
Ca'  them  where  the  bumie  rows, 
My  winsome  dearie  o." 

Now,  only  a  shapeless  pile  of  grey  stones,  scattered  here  and 
there  on  the  high  pastures,  marks  where  stood  those  once  joy- 
ous shielings,  and  in  the  sweet  valleys,  whence  once  rose  the  blue 
smoke  from  many  a  happy  home,  no  sound  is  now  heard  save  the 
bleating  of  the  hateful  big  Southern  sheep,  or  the  bark  of  the 
Lowland  dog  which  tends  them. 

It  is  to  the  connection  of  the  hated  Lowland  sheep  with  the 
unhappy  clearances,  that  allusion  is  made  in  the  old  sad  song  : 

''  The  flocks  of  a  stranger  the  long  glens  are  roaming, 
Where  a  thousand  fair  homesteads  smoked  bonnie  at  gloaming  ; 
Our  wee  crofts  run  wild  wi*  the  bracken  and  heather, 
And  our  gables  stand  ruinous,  bare  to  the  weather !  " 

For  there  came  a  time,  not  in  the  Isles  alone,  but  throughout  the 
Highlands,  when  proprietors  began  to  realize  that  big  farms  were 
more  lucrative  than  small  ones,  and  that  the  new  system  of  sheep- 
farming  would  assuredly  bring  in  far  larger  returns  than  any 
hitherto  dreamt  of.  So  broad  tracts  of  pasture-land  were  converted 
into  sheep-runs,  and  the  small  farmers  were  displaced  to  make  room 
for  fewer  but  wealthier  men.  Then  came  the  sad  stories  of  evictiona 
which  drew  tears  of  blood  from  many  an  honest  heart,  and  chiefly 
from  those  weak  and  aged  ones,  condemned  to  end  their  lonely 


THE  HATEFUL  BIO  SHEEP.  277 

years  in  poor  huts  on  the  bleak  sea-coast,  or  crowded  together  in 
bated  towns,  wbile  their  able-bodied  bread-winners  went  ofif  to  far 
countries,  there  to  establish  new  colonies,  where,  to  this  day,  the 
memory  of  the  old  home  is  cherished,  and  no  tongue  save  Gaelic  is 
spoken.^ 

So  intimately  were  these  sad  compulsory  clearances  associated  in 
the  minds  of  the  people  with  the  introduction  of  the  strange  sheep, 
that  on  one  occasion  a  minister  in  Skye,  haying  exhausted  rhetoric  in 
describing  the  joys  of  Heaven,  crowned  all  by  touching  a  deeply 
sympathetic  chord,  when  he  declared  that  *'  as  no  evil  thing  could 
enter  the  Blessed  Kingdom,  there  would  assuredly  be  no  bio 
SHEEP  there  ! " 

The  "  tooth  of  the  big  sheep  "  was  proverbial  for  all  evil  Never- 
theless, throughout  the  Isles  and  Highlands,  flocks  and  herds  such 
as  were  never  dreamt  of  in  the  days  of  our  ancestors,  now  fatten 
peacefully  on  mountain  pastures,  covering  millions  of  acres  which 
heretofore  were  of  small  account,  but  which  now  represent  large 
sources  of  revenue  to  their  proprietors. 

There  are,  however,  certain  districts  on  the  mainland,  notably  in 
Kintail,  in  which  it  is  affirmed  that  (whereas  the  cattle  which  had 
heretofore  pastured  on  the  hills  had  helped  to  keep  the  land  fertile) 
the  incessant  close  nibbling  of  the  sheep  has  so  utterly  exhausted 
it,  that  it  is  now  deemed  advisable  to  let  the  ground  lie  fallow  for  a 
term  of  years.  It  is  said  that  where  sheep  alone  occupy  the  land, 
the  grazings  4eteriorate  to  such  an  extent  (notwithstanding  heather- 
burning  and  drainage)  that  farms  which  in  former  years  have 
supported,  say,  five  thousand  sheep,  will  now  barely  yield  pasture 
for  four  thousand. 

^  Very  characteristic  were  the  words  of  a  Lewis  man,  addressing  the  Royal 
Commission  :— *'  He  had  heard  from  a  nephew  who  went  to  America  that 
when  the  Highland  people  met  together,  as  they  did  to-day,  the  burden  of 
their  conversation  was  as  to  the  old  home  they  had  left  behind  them,  and 
they  used  to  say  that  if  they  could,  they  would  return  to  the  Lews.  He  had 
it  from  a  trustworthy  man— Donald  Macleod— that  his  sister  and  her  husband, 
who  were  in  America,  were  not  well  satisfied  there,  and  that,  though  they 
were  still  young,  their  htouU  were  as  tohUe  (u  the  eea-gvU^  mourning  for  the 
land  of  their  birth." 


278  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

To  allow  the  land  to  recover  from  this  exhaustion,  is  the  reason 
now  assigned  by  one  proprietor  for  a  considerable  extension  of  his 
deer  forest  in  part  of  Eoss-shire,  though  it  might  well  be  thought 
that  these  already  occupied  their  full  share  of  the  land,  inasmuch 
as  the  twenty-five  deer-forests  of  Eoss-shire  cover  one  third  of  the 
whole  county. 

(It  is  stated  that  deer-forests  and  sheep-runs  together  occupy 
two-thirds  of  the  Highlands.  Of  the  former  it  has  been  recently 
said :  *'  They  extend  in  an  almost  unbroken  line  from  the  southern 
borders  of  Perthshire  to  the  shores  of  the  Pentland  Firth,  and 
embrace  an  area  of  over  two  million  acres  of  some  of  the  best  pas- 
turage in  the  Highlands.  Within  this  vast  space  absolute  silence 
reigns.  Sheep  and  cattle  are  of  course  rigidly  excluded,  and  the 
only  human  occupants  are  a  few  gillies."  The  writer  might  have 
added  that  the  artist,  the  poet,  and  he  who  would  seek  new  bodily 
and  mental  strength  in  those  beautiful  and  health-giving  mountain 
regions,  are  all  alike  jealously  excluded,  lest  their  human  presence 
should  disturb  the  wild  deer,  and  spoil  the  sport  of  the  few.) 

But  in  listening  to  the  tale  of  woe  and  of  want  which  has  been 
poured  into  the  ears  of  the  Royal  Commissioners,  appointed  to 
inqmre  into  the  condition  of  the  poor  islanders  in  May  1883  (when 
we  have  heard  the  pitiful  stories  of  how,  about  thirty  years  ago,  the 
inhabitants  of  innumerable  townships  were  evicted  from  the  lands 
which  they  had  brought  under  cultivation,  and  which  yielded  fair 
returns — and  of  the  people  being  compelled  to  settle  on  worthless 
peat-moss,  or  to  subdivide  the  small  crofts  already  in  possession  of 
other  men,  and  to  eke  out  a  wretched  living  by  twice  a  day  follow- 
ing the  receding  tide,  in  search  of  limpets  and  other  shell-fish),  we 
cannot  but  sympathize  with  the  speaker  who,  alluding  to  the  old 
blithe  days  in*  the  summer  shielings,  days  of  comparative  abund- 
ance, says :  ''  It  is  unseemly  that  the  big  sheep  should  be  dying  of 
fatness  alongside  of  us,  and  we,  the  people,  be  driven  from  the  land 
of  our  fathers  to  seek  to  provide  our  living  on  the  face  of  the  sea,'* 
— a  living  which  they  can  scarcely  contrive  to  procure,  and  which 
most  men  would  deem  well-nigh  starvation. 

Truly  it  is  pitiful  to  hear  the  accusation  of  "extravagance" 


A  CUP  OF  TEA,  OB  AN  EGQ  ?  279 

which,  in  the  course  of  this  inquiry,  some  witnesses  have  hrought 
against  their  poorer  neighbours,  and  then  to  learn  that  this  refers 
to  their  indulging  in  a  little  weak  tea — possibly,  if  they  can  afiford 
it,  with  the  addition  of  a  little  sugar  as  their  only  substitute  for  the 
milk  of  which  they  and  their  children  have  been  entirely  deprived 
by  the  loss  of  the  pastures.  This  extravagant  beverage — a  little  weak 
tea  without  milk — is  all  they  have  to  wash  down  their  hardly-earned 
porridge ;  and  so  deleterious  to  the  little  ones  is  this  found  to  be, 
that  the  doctor  of  one  district  strongly  recommends  the  adoption  of 
cheap  beer  instead  of  tea — a  lamentable,  sole  alternative,  while  the 
tempting  pasture-lands  lie  outspread  on  every  side.^ 

A  hard  struggle,  in  truth,  have  all  these  poor  folk  to  obtain  their 

^  The  worst  of  it  is,  that  this  cheap  luxury  of  tea  is  only  obtained  by  the 
sacrifice  of  their  few  eggs.  It  seems  difficult  for  us  to  realize  a  breakfast  at 
which  we  should  have  to  choose  between  a  cup  of  milkless  tea  or  an  egg  ! 

Here  is  a  bit  of  medical  evidence  given  before  the  Royal  Commission  : 

Q, — Has  it  come  within  your  notice  that  the  children  are  physically  in 
want  of  milk?  A  .—They  have  nothing  like  a  command  of  milk.  Even  the 
cows  that  have  calved  are  giving  little  or  no  milk,  and  the  calves  require  to  be 
fed  with  meal  and  other  food.  It  is  a  difficulty  with  me  in  treating  these 
people  when  I  recommend  them  to  have  milk.    They  say  they  cannot  get  it. 

One  of  the  common  diseases  of  the  country  is  dyspepsia.  There  is  scarcely 
a  patient  who  comes  to  me  who  is  not  dyspeptic.  It  is  caused  by  the  large 
quantities  of  oatmeal  which  they  eat  without  any  other  food. 

Q. — Can  you  suggest  any  other  diet  within  the  reach  of  the  people  ?  A. — 
If  they  would  not  sell  their  eggs  for  tea,  and  if  they  toould  use  them  them- 
selves.  They  sell  their  eggs  to  the  local  merchants,  and  they  have  been  get- 
ting 8d.  a  dozen  for  them. 

One  of  the  crofters  is  questioned  on  this  sale  of  eggs. 

Q.  —Do  you  not  keep  a  good  many  hens  7  A. — I  did  not  count  the  number 
we  have,  but  I  do  not  think  it  is  more  than  five  or  six. 

Q.^ls  it  not  profitable  to  keep  hens?  A.— If  we  kept  many  of  them  we 
would  have  to  buy  food  for  them  from  Olcugow,  and  there  would  not  be  much 
profit  then. 

Q.  —Do  you  think  a  man  would  be  able  to  get  as  many  eggs  as  would  enable 
him  to  pay  his  rent  ?  A. — They  would  not  keep  him  in  tobacco.  The  women 
get  the  money. 

Q.—And  I  suppose  that  goes  for  tea?  ^.— Yes,  that  is  it  exactly.  They 
canH  do  otherwise,  they  ean*t  eat  their  bread  dry.  They  must  have  something 
to  wash  it  down,  and  they  can*t  get  anythiny  else. 


280  IN   THE  HEBRIDES. 

daily  bread,  and  the  evidence  of  one  and  all  goes  to  prove  that  their 
poor  little  crofts  (with  soil  exhausted  by  eighty  or  a  hundred  years 
of  incessant  tillage)  will  no  longer  yield  them  sufficient  food  to  keep 
their  families  for  more  than  perhaps  a  couple  of  months  in  the  year ; 
so  it  is  a  matter  of  perpetual  anxiety  how  to  provide  the  oatmeal 
necessary  for  the  remaining  months,  either  by  precarious  toil  at 
the  fisheries,  or  at  any  other  work  that  can  be  obtained. 

Yet  while  all  corners  of  the  Isles  are  overshadowed  by  this  ever- 
deepening  cloud  of  poverty,  the  actual  market  value  of  the  land  has 
increased  at  a  rate  altogether  astounding.  This  very  district  of 
Harris  (a  tract  of  about  twenty-four  miles  in  length,  by  seven  in 
breadth)  was,  in  the  last  century,  sold  by  Macleod  of  Macleod  for 
the  sum  of  £15,000  to  a  son  of  Sir  Norman  Macleod  of  Bemera. 
In  the  beginning  of  the  present  century  it  was  purchased  by  Lord 
Dunmore  for  £60,000,  and  only  a  few  years  ago,  half  the  estate  was 
bought  by  Sir  Edward  Scott  of  Ardvourlie  as  a  deer-forest,  for 
about  £155,000,  an  investment  which,  while  it  shows  a  nominal 
rental  of  £2200,  in  point  of  fact  yields  small  pecuniary  return, 
and,  on  the  contrary,  calls  for  an  annual  outlay  of  large  sums, 
amounting  in  one  year  to  £6000  1  No  wonder  that  Sir  Edward 
was  described  to  the  Royal  Commissioners  as  "  a  generous  Eng- 
lishman of  the  highest  type  1 "  Few  Highland  proprietors  could 
emulate  such  an  example,  and  yet,  with  all  the  assistance  they  have 
received,  the  people  of  Harris  are  now  in  a  state  of  as  great  distress 
as  any  of  their  neighbours. 

We  deemed  ourselves  fortunate  in  having  seen  the  country  in 
sunshine. 

Ere  we  started  to  retrace  our  way  to  Tarbert,  the  scene  had  utterly 
changed.  Leaden-hued  clouds  rested  on  the  summits  of  the  dark 
hills,  and  soon  rolled  down  their  sides,  shutting  out  the  last  gleam 
of  sunlight.  Then  came  the  rain — no  gentle  summer  showers,  but 
pitiless  sheets  of  drenching  rain,  falling  in  torrents,  and  hiding  from 
us  every  trace  of  the  beautiful  scenery  around.  It  poured  without 
intermission  till  after  midnight,  and  we  were  all  drenched. 

A  genuine  Highlander  will  tell  you  that  a  thoroughly  wet  plaid 
is  the  warmest  thing  in  the  world,  as  the  swollen  wool  can  keep 


STORNOWAY.  281 

out  the  cold,  and  keep  in  the  heat,  twice  as  well  as  when  dry ;  and 
if  he  has  the  luck  of  an  extra  wrap  to  throw  on  outside  of  all,  he 
asks  no  warmer  bedding !  Happily  for  us,  a  good  store  of  dry 
clothing  awaited  us  in  the  yacht,  and  the  weeping  of  night  was 
forgotten  when,  at  dawn,  we  awoke  to  the  consciousness  of  another 
day  of  unclouded  glory  such  as  seems  to  me  never  to  shine  so 
brightly  as  in  these  Isles. 

"We  were  much  tempted  to  make  our  next  expedition  northward 
to  the  Isle  of  Lewis,  calling  at  Stornoway,  there  to  see  how  art  and 
wealth  combined  have  triumphed  over  bleak  nature  in  producing 
such  wonderful  gardens  round  the  modern  castle — gardens  where 
every  bit  of  rock  is  turned  to  picturesque  account ;  where  roses  are 
made  to  blossom  in  long  glass  passages,  and  where  figs  and  bananas 
and  grapes  ripen  in  profusion  in  stoves  and  hot-houses. 

In  the  year  1844  Sir  James  Matheson  purchased  this  naturally 
unattractive  isle;  which  has  been  well  compared  to  "  a  wet  peat  on 
a  stone,"  so  wholly  is  it  composed  of  peat-bogs  and  rock.  Vast 
sums  of  money  have  been  devoted  to  the  improvement  of  this  very 
unpromising  soil;  890  acres  of  peat-moss  having  been  reclaimed 
and  converted  into  arable  land,  and  on  this  one  item  (together  with 
the  building  of  farm-houses  and  offices)  no  less  than  £100,000  have 
been  expended. 

And  this  is  but  one  detail  of  the  many  schemes  whereby  a 
wealthy  proprietor  sought  to  benefit  his  land  and  his  people.  He 
established  free  schools  in  all  parts  of  his  property ;  and  in  the  first 
twenty-six  years  he  found  that  he  had  spent  no  less  than  £11,680 
on  school-buildings  and  teachers'  salaries.  Twenty-five  thousand 
pounds  more  were  expended  on  the  construction  of  two  hundred 
miles  of  roads  and  bridges ;  and  enormous  sums  on  all  manner  of 
works  for  the  improvement  of  Stornoway — building  curing-houses 
for  their  fisheries,  introducing  gas  and  water.  Thirty-three  thousand 
pounds  went  to  starting  great  chemical  works,  £6000  to  a  patent 
slip,  £2225  to  constructing  a  quay  for  the  steamers,  which  Sir 
James  first  chartered  at  his  own  expense,  as,  before  his  day,  the 
Ijcws  had  been  dependent  for  aU  communication  with  the  mainland 
on  a  sailing  mail-packet.    Sir  James's  actual  personal  losses  on  these 


282  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

various  steamboat  transactions  are  represented  bj  sums  of  £15,000 
and  £167,000  !i 

It  has  been  so  gravely  asserted  that  all  this  vast  outlay  has  proved 
wholly  unremunerative,  that  it  is  satisfactory  to  learn  that  the  total 
rental  of  the  estate  has  increased  from  under  £11,000  in  a.d.  1844 
to  upwards  of  £18,000  in  1883.  Of  this  sum,  £12,700  is  paid  as 
land-rent,  and  £3700  for  shootings. 

The  special  intei'est  of  these  details  lies  in  the  fact  that  this  Isle 
of  Lewis  is  the  very  centre  of  some  of  the  most  perplexing  pro- 
blems of  social  economy  in  the  present  day.  For  while  wealth  has 
thus  been  poured  out  like  water  on  the  thirsty  land,  the  actual 
condition  of  the  people  has  gone  on  steadily  deteriorating.  Within 
the  last  century  their  numbers  have  about  trebled,  and  their  poverty 
seems  to  have  increased  in  the  same  ratio,  so  that  at  the  present 
time  the  people  of  Lewis  are  plunged  in  deepest  depths  of  destitu- 
tion, and  the  rates  of  Stornoway  are  said  to  have  reached  the 
astounding  figure  of  9«.  id,  in  the  pound  ! ! 

One  of  the  most  painful  features  in  the  recent  inquiry  into  the 
condition  of  these  really  poor  people,  was  the  loud  assertion,  by  those 
purporting  to  plead  their  cause,  that '^nothing  has  been  done  for 
them"  by  the  proprietors.  It  was  then  mentioned  incidentally, 
that  in  addition  to  the  enormous  sums  which  in  the  last  forty  years 
hav6  been  expended  on  the  isle  by  Sir  James,  Lady  Matheson 
annually  bestows  £50  on  private  charity  in  each  of  the  many 
parishes,  besides  an  annual  gift  of  £100  worth  of  potatoes,  while 
this  year  she  has  contributed  £1500  to  the  destitution  fund  and 
£1500  to  the  construction  of  Ness  Harbour,  for  the  express  purpose 
of  providing  work  for  the  people.  But  these  trifles  are  of  small 
account  in  the  eyes  of  such  popular  orators  as  have  recently  busied 
themselves  in  stirring  up  discontent  and  dissension  throughout  the 
North- Western  Isles  and  Highlands.' 

^  Statement  of  Mr.  Mackay,  Chamberlain  to  Sir  James  Matheson. 

3  The  method  adopted  to  kindle  these  incendiary  sparks  is  veiy  clearly 
suggested  by  the  concluding  paragraph  of  a  note  addressed  by  the  Secretaiy 
of  the  Lewis  *^  Highland  Land  Law  Reform  Association  "  to  the  Secretaiy  to 
the  Royal  Comnussion  on  the  Highlands  and  Islands :— 


HAND-MADE  POTTERY   OF  BARVAS.  283 


Though  no  special  beauty  of  scenery  attracted  ns  northward,  we 
would  fain  have  sailed  round  the  stormy  Butt  of  Lewis,  to  visit  the 
primitive  people  of  Barvas,  whose  rude  home-made  pottery  we  had 
seen  treasured  in  museums,  and  might  very  naturally  have  attributed 
to  the  Ancient  Britons !  And  from  Barvas  we  would  have  passed 
on  to  Loch  Bemera,  to  see  the  Druidic  remains  at  Callemish, 
where  several  concentric  circles,  and  also  a  semi-circular  group  of 
monoliths,  with  various  tumuli  and  other  rude  stone  monuments, 
remain  to  puzzle  antiquaries  with  suggestions  of  the  secrets  of  by- 
gone ages. 

The  solemn  silent  witnesses 

Of  ancient  days— altars  or  graves. 

But  whatever  temptations  were  offered  by  Lewis,  a  scene  of  more 
animated  interest  invited  us  southward,  to  North  Uist)  where  a 
great  cattle-market  was  to  be  held  on  the  low  flat  shores  of  Loch 
Maddy,  a  strange  sea-loch,  to  which  the  entrance  is  by  a  narrow 
opening,  guarded,  as  it  were,  by  two  great  masses  of  basalt,  which 
jut  up  from  the  sea,  and  are  remarkable  as  being  the  only  basalt 

"  Lewis  Highland  L,  L.  E,  Association, 

^^  Storrmoay,  \^h  June,  1883. 
^  Sib, — On  behalf  of  our  Association,  I  beg  to  express  our  gratitude  to  your 
Royal  Commission  for  the  very  patient  hearing  they  were  pleased  to  give  to 
the  delegates  freely  elected  by  the  crofters  as  their  representatives  to  appear 
before  you.  We  had  some  trouble  in  getting  the  island  roused  to  a  sense  of 
its  responsibility^  but  that  is  all  that  we  did,  or  mean  to  do. — I  have  the 
honour  to  be,  sir,  your  obedient  servant, 

"  Waltee  Rose,  Secretary. 

''M.  M'Keill,  Esq.,  Secretary  to  Royal  Oomnussioners." 

The  spokesman  of  this  Society,  Mir.  A  Morrison,  found  himself  in  a  very 
awkward  position  when  compelled  by  .the  Royal  Commissioners  to  reduce  his 
high-sounding  general  statements  and  demands  to  sober  detail.  He  had  loudly 
asserted  that  there  was  ample  land  on  Lewis  to  provide  farms  of  a  given  size 
for  a  population  of  60,000  or  70,000  persons,  and  keep  them  all  in  comfort, 
whereas  at  present  a  population  of  some  20,000  can  barely  exist  When  com- 
pelled to  face  the  question  in  detaU,  it  was  proved  that  his  demands  would 
require  no  less  than  3,500,000  acres,  and  vast  flocks  and  herds — whereas  the 
total  area  of  Lewis  is  but  404,000  acres !  consisting  chiefly  of  peat-moss ! ! ! 


284  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

within  many  hours'  saiL  These  are  called  Maddies,  or  watch-dogs. 
Hence  the  name  of  the  sea-loch^  which  extends  inland  in  every 
direction,  its  endless  ramifications  forming  innumerable  fiords, 
which  intersect  the  land  with  the  strangest  network  of  channels. 

In  such  a  labyrinth  of  land  and  water,  locomotion  is  indeed  a 
difficult  matter,  for  he  who  starts  on  foot  finds  that  at  every  hun« 
dred  yards  he  is  stopped  by  a  salt-water  stream,  while  travelling  by 
boat  is  even  more  slow  and  wearisome.  Here  and  there,  however, 
the  creeks  narrow  so  strangely  that  they  are  no  wider  than  streams, 
and  have  accordingly  been  spanned  by  roughly-constructed  bridges. 

It  was  no  easy  matter  to  find  a  piece  of  sufficiently  connected 
land  to  form  a  suitable  site  for  the  great  cattle-market,  and  even 
that  selected  was  a  strangely-blended  bit  of  land  and  sea.  I  doubt 
if  any  other  spot  could  show  so  picturesque  a  cattle-fair.  In  the 
first  place,  all  the  cattle  had  to  be  brought  from  neighbouring  isles 
to  this  common  centre,  and,  as  each  boat  arrived,  with  its  rich 
brown  sails  and  living  cargo  of  wild  rough  Highland  cattle  of  all 
possible  colours,  the  unloading  was  summarily  accomplished  by 
just  throwing  them  overboard  and  leaving  them  to  swim  ashore. 

These  island  beasties  take  kindly  to  the  salt  water,  and  seemed 
to  rejoice  in  finding  cool  bathing-places  on  every  side.  All  day 
long  there  were  groups  of  them  standing  in  the  water  or  on  the 
shore  that  made  me  long  for  the  brush  of  a  Rosa  Bonheur — such 
attractive  combinations  of  rich  warm  colour — silvery-greys  and  reds, 
browns  and  blacks,  rich  sienna  and  pale  sand-colour,  all  reflected  in 
the  pale  aquamarine  water.  In  the  whole  market  there  was  not  a 
beast  that  was  not  individually  a  study  for  an  artist,  with  its  wide- 
spreading  horns,  and  rough  shaggy  coat,  and  its  large,  soft,  heavily- 
fringed  eyes,  that  seemed  to  look  so  wonderingly  on  the  unwonted 
assemblage  round  them. 

Besides  the  fishers'  brown-sailed  boats,  several  tiny  white-winged 
yachts  had  brought  customers  to  the  market  and  added  to  the 
general  stir — a  stir  which'  must  have  so  amazed  the  lone  sea-birds, 
which  are  wont  to  claim  these  waters  as  their  own,  for,  as  a  general 
rule,  a  more  utterly  lonely  spot  than  this  dull  flat  shore  could 
scarcely  be  found. 


NORTH  UIST.  285 

Now,  however,  an  incredible  number  of  islanders  bad  assembled. 
It  seemed  a  fair  matter  for  wonder  where  they  could  all  have  come 
from,  but  a  tidier,  more  respectable  lot  of  people  I  have  never  seen. 
These  people  of  Korth  Uist — now,  alas !  like  their  neighbours,  so 
sorely  oppressed  by  downright  want — generally  rank  among  the 
most  prosperous  of  the  Outer  Islesmen,  their  patient  industry  being 
proverbial. 

Frugal  as  Chinamen,  these  careful  folk  deem  no  work  too  trivial 
if  they  can  by  any  means  thereby  turn  an  honest  penny. 

Thus  while  many  of  their  neighbours  are  hopelessly  in  arrears  of 
rent  (the  majority  of  the  crofters  on  Barra  being  five  years,  and 
those  on  Mingalay  ten  years  in  arrears),  the  men  of  North  Uist 
have  kept  well  up  to  the  mark.  It  is  also  worthy  of  note,  that 
notwithstanding  great  hardships,  consequent  on  evictions  in  bygone 
years,  their  houses,  built  by  themselves,  are  of  an  unusually  good 
type,  most  of  them  having  separate  outhouses  for  their  cattle. 

Most  of  the  four  thousand  inhabitants  of  North  Uist  live  on 
the  further  side  of  the  isle,  and  had  come  across  in  the  rudest  of 
little  carts,  drawn  by  shaggy  ponies,  whose  harness  was  the  most 
primitive  combination  of  bits  of  old  rope,  connected  by  twists  of 
the  strong  wiry  grass  of  the  sand-hills  (bent,  we  call  it  on  the  east 
coast).  Now  the  carts  were  tilted  up,  and  watched  over  by  wise 
collie-dogs,  while  the  ponies  were  turned  loose  to  graze  on  the 
heather.  Indeed,  the  number  of  these  was  a  noteworthy  feature  in 
the  scene,  for  these  rough  little  creatures  find  their  own  living  on 
the  moor,  whence  their  owners  must  cut,  and  the  ponies  must  carry, 
the  peats  which  are  the  sole  fuel  of  the  isles.  Hitherto  they  have 
also  helped  the  kelp-burners,  in  carrying  the  heavy  wet  searweed  to 
a  safe  drying  ground,  but  that  harvest  of  the  sea  is  no  longer  to  be 
garnered. 

Most  fortunately  for  us  all,  the  weather  was  glorious ;  indeed, 
the  blazing  sun,  reflected  by  the  still  waters,  made  us  long  for 
shelter,  but  not  a  rock  or  a  bush  was  there  to  break  the  monotony 
of  the  flat  shore.  The  only  morsels  of  shade  lay  beneath  the  few 
white  booths  set  up  by  itinerant  merchants,  that  lads  and  lasses 
might  buy  their  fairings,  and  that  the  drovers  might  get  their  dram 


286  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

— the  latter  being  a  very  important  item  in  the  day's  pleasure,  for 
the  Blue  Elbbon  Army  has  not  yet  weaned  the  islesmen  from  their 
love  of  mountain-dew ;  and  of  the  only  two  manufactories  estab- 
lished in  the  Isles,  one  is  a  good  woollen  factory  at  Portree,  but  the 
other  is  a  distillery  at  Tallisker,  in  the  Isle  of  Skye,  which  turns 
out  forty-five  thousand  gallons  of  whisky  per  annum,  of  which 
about  twenty  thousand  are  consumed  on  the  Isle  of  Skye  itself. 

Naturally,  there  was  a  liberal  consumption  of  "the  barley  bree" 
at  the  market,  but»  the  consumers  being  all  hardened  vessels,  no 
one  appeared  any  the  worse,  nor  even  any  the  livelier — and  liveli- 
ness is  by  no  means  a  characteristic  of  these  gentle  quiet  folk, 
most  of  whom  seem  to  be  naturally  of  a  somewhat  melancholy 
temperament.  Men  and  women  alike  have  a  grave  expression — 
not  exactly  careworn,  for  in  truth^they  are  generally  ready  to 
accept  their  hardships  with  amazing  philosophy,  but  a  far-away 
look,  as  those  whose  life-long  teachers  have  been  the  winds  and 
waves, — solemn  spiritual  influences  which  have  sunk  deep  into 
their  souls.  As  are  the  physical  surroundings,  so  is  the  reflex,  on 
the  character  of  a  race  strangely  sensitive  to  all  that  can  suggest 
dreamy  visions  of  the  unseen, — a  people  whose  cradle-songs  have 
been  the  wild  lays  of  Ossian,  sung  to  eerie  Gaelic  airs,  pathetic  and 
mournful  as  the  mingled  sounds  in  nature  which  they  so  faith- 
fully reproduce — the  moaning  of  the  winds,  the  wild  cry  of  sea- 
birds,  the  deep  booming  of  the  waves,  the  thunder  echoing  amid 
the  mountains. 

Faithfully  do  these  nature-taught  islanders  live  in  harmony  with 
her  lessons.  As  the  influences  of  nature  in  calm  are  ever  soothing, 
and  those  of  storm  are  solemnizing,  so  the  tendency  of  the  people  is 
to  quiet  thoughtfulness,  as  though  life  were  altogether  grave  and 
sad.  Yet  at  a  pleasant  word  the  whole  face  brightens  with  a 
beaming  smile,  just  as  does  the  face  of  their  native  moorland,  when 
glorified  by  a  gleam  of  radiant  sunlight.  But  anything  of  the 
nature  of  boisterous  mirth  would  seem  utterly  out  of  keeping  with 
the  character  of  place  or  people — ^well-nigh  as  jarring  as  a  sound  of 
laughter  in  a  cathedral. 

A  whole-hearted  son  of  the  Isles  has  just  told  me  that  I  have 


LOCH   MADDY  CATTLE  MARKET.  287 

misinterpreted  his  countrymen ,  and  that  the  gravity  is  a  quality 
of  modern  growth,  carefully  fostered  by  "  Free  Kirk  "  influencea 
He  maintains  that  the  tme  nature  is  that  which  only  peeps  out 
occasionally,'  when  the  harley-bree  has  shaken  off  the  acquired 
gravity,  and  encouraged  the  singing  of  rollicking  songs  and  dancing 
in  the  energetic  fashion  of  olden  days,  compared  with  which  our 
most  inspiriting  "  Eeels  of  Tulloch  "  are  tame  indeed. 

I  am  bound  to  believe  these  words  of  a  true  Gael,  but  I  speak 
of  the  people  as  they  seemed  to  me,  and  this  great  cattle-market 
afforded  a  very  fair  opportunity  for  judging. 

The  only  sensible  folk  who  had  made  provision  against  sun  or  rain 
were  some  wise  old  women,  possessed  of  large  bright  blue  umbrellas, 
beneath  the  shadow  of  which  they  sat  on  the  parched  grass.  They 
were  comfortably  dressed  in  dark-blue  homespun,  with  scarlet 
plaids  and  white  mutches,  and  near  them  grazed  several  sand- 
coloured  ponies,  forming  a  pretty  bit  of  colour. 

Behind  them  groups  of  bright,  healthy-looking  lads  and  lasses 
were  assembled  round  the  white  booths,  and  all  along  the  yellow 
shore  faint  wreaths  of  white  smoke  from  the  kelp-fires  seemed  to 
blend  the  blues  of  sea  and  sky;  for  the  blessed  boon  of  sunshine  was 
too  precious  to  be  wasted  even  in  a  holiday  to  Loch  Maddy  Fair, 
and  the  kelp-burners  dared  not  risk  the  loss  of  one  sunny  day,  for 
here,  in  North  Uist,  the  industry  of  kelp-burning  was  continued 
till  quite  recently — that  toiling  harvest,  whose  returns  are  now  so 
small,  and  always  so  uncertain,*  that  the  men  of  Skye  have,  for 
a  good  many  years,  altogether  abandoned  it.  This  is  partly  due 
to  the  fact  that  the  sea-weed  of  Skye  contains  a  much  smaller  pro- 
portion of  the  precious  salts  which  give  it  value,  than  does  the 
weed  on  some  other  isles,  consequently  it  fetched  a  lower  price. 
Now  even  these  industrious  kelp-burners  of  Uist  have  given  up  the 
work,  though  the  loss  of  the  pittance  they  thus  earned  is  most 
seriously  felt 

Loch  Maddy  itself  is  a  most  extraordinary  place — quite  unique, 

I  should  say — with  the  endless  ramifications  of  its  dreary  salt-water 

lochs,  winding  in  and  out  in  every  direction  in  countless  little  fiords, 

*  some  of  which  run  inland  for  nine  miles,  so  that  although  the  loch 


288  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

only  covers  about  ten  square  miles,  its  coast  line  actually  exceeds 
three  hundred  miles.  It  has  been  compared  to  the  pattern  of  fairy 
frost  on  a  window-pane,  or  to  an  outspread  branch  of  sea-weed, 
whose  countless  leaves  and  stems  represent  the  number  of  creeks 
and  fiords  that  spread  in  every  direction.  On  this  occasion  it 
looked  its  very  best,  bathed  in  a  flood  of  hot  sunshine ;  but,  on  a 
dull  misty  day,  or  after  prolonged  rains,  it  must  be  dreary  beyond 
description,  when  the  sad-coloured  land,  and  the  almost  motionless 
sea,  seem  so  blended  as  to  have  no  clear  boundaries,  but  are  simply 
a  sort  of  amphibious  creation ;  where  the  monotonous  creeks  are  all 
discoloured  by  the  mud  washed  down  from  the  low  dull  shores — 
very  desolate  and  depressing.  There  are  indeed  ranges  of  moorland 
which  attain  to  a  height  of  seven  hundred  feet,  but  they  are  so 
shapeless  as  to  lend  no  feature  of  beauty  to  the  scene. 

It  is  a  strangely  wUd,  eerie  place,  the  haunt  of  all  manner  of 
roan-hating  creatures.  Even  the  shy  seal  ventures  up  these  silent 
creeks,  and  lies  basking  on  the  rocks  which  the  tide  has  left  bare  ; 
and  as  to  the  sea-birds,  they  know  every  turn  of  the  winding  waters, 
and  the  quiet  nooks  where  they  may  rear  their  downy  broods  in 
perfect  safety. 

We  lingered  for  several  hours  amid  the  mingled  throng  of 
islanders  and  their  cattle.  Then  we  rowed  away  in  a  small  boat  to 
explore  some  of  the  winding  fiords,  never  knowing  how  far  inland 
we  might  penetrate.  Sometimes  floating  dreamily  alon^,  passing 
one  moment  through  a  channel  as  narrow  as  it  was  shallow,  then 
opening  into  a  deep,  wide,  brackish  lagoon  ;  an  eerie  place  in  rainy 
weather,  but  to-day  all  glorified  by  the  light  that  gilds  each  weed 
and  broken  bank  !  Overhead  hovered  a  cloud  of  restless  birds, 
breaking  the  dreamy  silence  with  the  wild  clamour  of  their  querulous 
cries ;  and  along  the  reedy  shore  a  mother  eider  duck  was  teaching 
her  fluffy  young  ones  the  art  of  swimming.  But  the  seals  had  been 
driven  far  away  by  the  stir  of  the  market,  though  no  sound  could 
reach  these  quiet  havens,  where  no  tempestuous  waves  breathe 
exhilarating  life  and  action,  but  all  is  still  and  well-nigh  pulseless. 

We  paddled  idly  along,  drinking  in  the  perfect  stillness  of  the 
glad  sunshine ;  watching  its  glancing  rays  reflected  from  the  water 


INFLUENCE  OF  SCENERY  ON  CHARACTER.      289 

on  the  shadov^y  rock  face,  in  rippling  trickles  of  light.  '  Here  and 
there  long  tendrils  of  honeysuckle  trailed  almost  to  the  waterV 
edge,  and  ever  and  anon  the  quick  motion  of  large  white  wings 
stirred  the  hreathless  air,  and  honeyed  fragrance  of  the  woodbine 
came  wafted  towards  us,  like  some  whisper  of  Heaven — eome 
*^  sweet  thought  in  a  dream.'' 

Then  once  more  turning  towards  the  more  open  sea,  we  watched 
the  sunlight  playing  on  the  opal  waters,  which,  defying  all  vulgar 
theories  of  colour,  vary  their  tints  according  to  some  law  of  their 
own,  changing  from  deepest  blue  to  clearest  green,  or  richest  purple, 
according  as  the  white  sand  or  the  golden  sea-weed  are  the  hidden 
treasures  that  lie  beneath  their  depths.  The  yellower  the  tangle, 
the  deeper  the  purple ;  and  lest  you  should  be  tempted  to  doubt 
the  secret  of  that  strange  rich  colouring,  here  and  there  some  tall 
giant  of  that  marine  forest  raises  its  head  to  the  upper  world, 
and  its  glossy  fronds  float  on  the  surface  in  lines  of  quivering 
light. 

Strangers  sometimes  speak  pityingly  of  the  wearisome  monotony 
of  a  life  lived  in  these  Isles.  I  cannot  myself  think  that  any  life 
so  encompassed  by  the  ceaseless  varieties  of  ocean  can  compare 
with  the  dull  depressing  sameness  of  existence  in  any  agricultural 
or  mining  district  on  the  mainland,  where,  from  one  year's  end  to 
another,  all  goes  on  in  regular  mechanical  order,  each  day  recalling 
the  last,  and  the  ugliness  of  all  around,  knowing  no  change. 

Here,  even  the  black  peat-moss  (which,  when  sodden  by  prolonged 
rains,  is  so  unutterably  dreary)  changes  as  if  by  magic  in  the  clear 
shining  that  comes  after  the  rain,  revealing  a  wealth  of  rich  colour, 
of  purple  heather  and  golden  lichens,  silken-tufted  grasses  and  deli- 
cate moorland  flowers,  dear  to  the  busy,  humming  bees,  but  dearer 
still  to  the  human  children  who,  all  unconsciously,  drink  in  these 
sweet  influences,  which  tend  to  mould  their  character  for  life.  He 
who  knows  the  delight  of  roaming  alone  in  such  wild  regions,  of 
watching  the  tremulous  white  mists  float  upward  from  the  dark 
peat  bog,  to  enfold  and  spiritualize  the  great  sleepy  hills,  can  per- 
haps realize  why  it  is  that  these  Children  of  the  Mist  are  so  dreamy 

and  unpractical  as  compared  with  their  Anglo-  Saxon  neighbours. 

u 


290  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

But  of  all  influences  which  combine  to  produce  the  Hebridean  as 
he  is,  none  approaches  the  ever-present  power  of  the  ocean,  which, 
as  a  living  inspiration,  is  for  ever  and  for  ever  whispering  its  mes- 
sages to  man,  woman,  and  child,  from  their  cradle  till  the  hoar 
when  they  are  laid  beneath  the  green  tnrf  within  sound  of  its 
ceaseless  dirges.  It  claims  its  right  to  keep  watch  oyer  the  islanders 
in  death  as  in  life,  and  steals  quietly  inland  that  it  may  leave  none 
unsought. 

As  though  the  salt  sea  did  'not  monopolize  enough  of  the  land, 
there  are  also  numerous  brackish  lochs  of  so-called  fresh  water. 
Many,  however,  are  really  fresh,  being  in  fact  just  chronic  pools 
formed  by  the  ever-renewed  rains,  which  drain  through  the  peat- 
moss, and  so  acquire  that  rich  clear-brown  hue,  varying  irom  the 
colour  of  treacle  to  that  of  London  porter.  Strange  to  say,  these 
dark-brovm  pools  abound  in  trout — hermit  colonies.  One  marvels 
how  they  came  there,  inasmuch  as  few  of  these  lochs  have  any 
inlet. 

Some  of  them  are  studded  with  small  islets,  on  which  are  the 
remains  of  Pictish  duns.  It  is  said  there  are  about  twenty  of  these 
in  North  Uist  alone.  They  are  circular,  and  of  the  rudest  construo- 
tion,  being  connected  with  the  land  by  stone  causeways,  which  are 
still  visible  above  the  water  level. 

These  lochs  have  sedgy  shores,  and  are  covered  with  white  and 
yellow  water-lilies,  amid  whose  fairy  blossoms  skim  radiant  dragon- 
flies  of  every  hue. 

The  lilies  are  very  precious  to  the  islanders,  who  use  their  loota 
lor  dyeing  wooL  Another  rich  brown  dye  is  obtained  from  some 
of  the  dark  mosses  and  lichens  that  make  such  kindly  coverings  for 
the  cold  rocks.  Heather  yields  a  yellow  colour,  and  a  warm  red  is 
extracted  from  the  common  bramble. 

But  the  most  beautiful  dye  of  all  is  procured  from  a  kind  of  rue, 
with  golden  blossoms,  which  grows  on  the  sandy  shores.  Its 
long  tough  roots  when  powdered  and  boiled,  produce  an  excellent 
red  dye,  but  they  are  also  eo  valuable  for  binding  the  said  sand, 
that  it  is  illegal  to  uproot  this  plant.  The  people,  however,  tell  of 
one  vain  woman  who,  in  her  longing  to  procure  this  rich  red  dye, 


THE  MACHABS.  291 

went  out  hj  night  to  gather  it,  in  defiance  of  her  hasband's  pro- 
hibition. She  was  never  seen  again,  but  soon  afterwards  the 
northern  sky  was  red  with  such  flashing  lights  as  had  never  been 
heard  of,  and  all  the  islanders  believe  assuredly  that  the  spirit  of 
the  woman  had  good  cause  to  rue  that  red  dye  I  The  Hebrideans 
are  by  no  means  the  only  race  who  watch  the  fluttering  of  those 
eerie  spirit-fires  with  something  of  awe.  The  Greenlanders  believe 
the  northern  lights  to  be  the  spirits  of  their  forefathers  going  forth 
to  battle.  And  to  all  dwellers  on  the  west  coast  the  aurora  brings 
a  certain  warning  of  much  rain  and  storm  approaching.  So  surely 
as  *'  the  sable  skirts  of  night "  are  fringed  with  that  celestial  light, 
and  the  dark  midnight  wears  her  luminous  crown  of  flashing  rays, 
so  surely  is  foul  weather  in  store,  and  the  wise  among  the  people 
make  provision  accordingly. 

The  island  of  North  Uist  is  now  the  property  of  Sir  John  Camp- 
bell Orde,  having  been  purchased  from  Lord  Macdonald's  trustees 
about  thirty  years  ago.  It  is  about  sijcteen  miles  in  length,  by 
seven  in  breadth. 

All  the  east  coast  of  North  Uist  is  the  same  sort  of  dreary,  boggy, 

mossy,  peaty  soil,  with  weary,  uninteresting,  low  creeks  and  inlets. 

The  west  coast,  however,  is  far  more  smiling,  and  offers  possibilities 

of  cultivation  on  a  small  scale,  so  there  all  the  inhabitants  are  to 

be  found.     All  along  the  shore  are  wide  white  sands,  beautiful  on 

a  calm  day,  but  liable  to  drift  over  the  cultivated  lands.    The  aim  of 

the  people  is,  therefore,  to  cultivate  the  wiry  bent  grass,  which 

spreads  its  long  clinging  roots,  and  makes  such  a  mat  as  binds  the 

sand  and  keeps  it  in  its  place.     After  awhile  a  thin  crust  of  soil 

forms  over  these  roots,  and  eventually  finer  grasses  find  a  livelihood 

on  these  macharsy  as  this  sandy  soil  is  called.     The  tussac  grass  is 

one  which  is  said  to  take  kindly  to  the  double  task  of  feeding  the 

flocks   and  binding   the  sands.      Nevertheless  the   maeharg  are 

dangerous  neighbours,  and  there  is  always  danger  lest,  in  years  of 

scarcity,  the  flocks  may  nibble  these  grasses  too  closely,  and  so 

break  this  protecting  surface,  forming  a  little  rent,  which  the  winds 

are  certain  to  discover,  and  very  quickly  enlarge,  and  one  stormy 

night  may  produce  such  wild  drifts  as  will  leave  promising  fields 

u  2 


292  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

sown  ivith  more  sand  than  the  poor  farmer  need  ever  hope  to  get 
rid  of. 

This  is  said  to  have  been  the  cause  of  that  overwhelming  sand- 
drift  which  converted  the  fertile  lands  of  Culbyn,  in  Morayshire, 
into  that  vast  chain  of  sand-hills  which  now  extends  along  the 
coast.  Seven  disastrous  years  of  famine  had  reduced  the  people  to 
such  extremity  of  poverty,  that  they  were  driven  to  collect  fuel  where 
and  how  they  could.  Thus  the  broom  and  bent  grass  which  had 
hitherto  bound  the  shore  were  all  torn  up,  and  the  wind  catching 
the  sand,  blew  it  in  thick  clouds  upwards  of  twenty-five  miles  along 
the  coast,  burying  thousands  of  acres  beneath  this  deep,  ever-shifting 
sand  desert. 

Happily  for  the  islanders,  the  sand  thus  carried  is  not  all  de- 
structive. The  whitest  sands  are  formed  entirely  of  shells,  ground 
to  the  finest  powder  by  the  pitiless  action  of  the  waves.  These,  of 
course,  are  pure  lime,  and  act  as  a  very  useful  manure,  enriching  all 
manner  of  crops.  You  can  generally  toll  the  little  islands  where 
the  shell-sand  is  most  abundant  by  the  richness  of  the  grass,  and 
tlie  fragrance  of  the  sweet  white  clover  which  scents  the  air. 

On  some  islands  protected  from  the  fury  of  the  Atlantic,  the 
shells  lie  unbroken  in  countless  myriads.  On  one  such  we  landed, 
near  the  coast  of  Hoss-shire  (the  Saint's  Island,  protected  by  the 
Isles  of  Raasay  and  Skye),  where,  to  the  depth  of  many  feet,  the 
little  shells  lie  heaped  up,  each  quite  perfect,  a  quarry  of  shell* 
gravel.  There  are  no  pebbles,  no  sand,  nothing  but  shells  closely 
packed  together  in  inexhaustible  store ;  little  shells  which  were  once 
silvery,  or  bright  yellow  and  brown,  but  are  now  bleached  by  per- 
haps centuries  of  exposure  to  pitiless  rains  and  blazing  sun.  Only 
a  silvery  sparkle  remains  to  tell  of  the  pearly  things  they  once  were. 
Above  them  is  a  light  crust  of  earth,  on  which  the  greenest  of 
verdant  pasture  shows  how  well  the  shell-lime  acts. 

The  cultivation  of  the  machars  is  not  the  sole  means  taken  to 
prevent  the  encroachments  of  the  sea.  In  some  places,  more 
especially  in  the  Lews,  tracts  of  land  have  actually  been  reclaimed, 
and  the  tide  shut  out  by  flood-gates,  in  Dutch  fashion. 

On  the  other  hand,  it  is  quite  certain  that  the  sea  now  covers 


WATER-LILIES.  293 

various  shores  where  villages  and  even  forests  have  stood.  For 
instance,  on  the  green  island  of  Yallaj,  lying  north  of  Uist,  there 
are  traces  of  very  fine  timber  and  mossy  ground  lying  below  high- 
water  mark.  Now  there  is  neither  moor  nor  moss  on  the  island, 
only  rich  green  pasture  lands,  and  shallow  fresh-water  lochs,  on 
whose  gleaming  surface  float  myriad  white  and  golden  water-lilies ; 
creamy  blossoms,  resting  on  their  own  glossy  leaves,  with  young 
buds  nestling  around ;  buds  that  even  in  the  depths  of  the  **  dim 
water  world  "  have  been  all  unconsciously  seeking  the  glorious  light 
above  them ;  mysteriously  drawn  upward  to  do  it  homage,  and 
never  swerving  to  the  right  hand  or  the  left  till  they  have  found 
it,  and  their  pure  hearts  silently  expand  toward  the  great  calm 
heaven,  which  broods  on  every  side,  and  lies  reflected  in  the  clear 
surface  of  the  waters.     Truly  an  image  of  peace  unutterable. 

On  one  of  these  quiet  lochs  there  is  a  tiny  green  island  which  is 
the  favourite  haunt  of  the  deer ;  they  swim  across  in  the  moonlight, 
to  this,  their  chosen  sanctuary,  where  they  are  rarely  molested. 

One  solitary  farm-house  represents  human  life  on  this  isolated 
shore,  which  is  connected  with  North  Uist  by  one  of  those  strange 
fords  that  link  together  so  many  of  these  islands,  affording  a  secure 
road  on  terra  firma  at  certain  hours  of  the  day,  while  a  little  sooner 
or  later,  a  strong  tide  rushes  along  in  foaming  currents,  covering  the 
ford  to  the  depth  of  eight  or  ten  feet  with  salt  waves — ^and  bringing 
with  it  a  vast  store  of  all  manner  of  shell-fish,  which  forms  a  very 
important  item  in  the  harvest  of  the  islanders.  As  soon  as  the  tide 
recedes,  a  great  number  of  people  betake  themselves  to  the  shore, 
with  their  creels,  and  their  rough  little  ponies — knowing  that  a 
good  tide  will  bring  them  far  more  than  they  can  carry,  of  cockles 
and  mussels,  periwinkles  and  limpets,  razor-fish  and  clams,  and  all 
manner  of  odds  and  ends  besides. 

The  abundance  of  cockles  and  periwinkles  is  almost  inconceivable. 
Of  the  latter  from  twenty  to  thirty  tons  are  despatched  to  London 
every  week,  by  the  steamers,  via  Glasgow ;  and  go  to  replenish  the 
stalls  of  the  old  wives  at  the  street  comers.  Oysters  from  Scalpk 
and  Loch  Snizort  also  find  their  way  there — and  vast  numbers  of 
lobsters,  dragged  from  their  rocky  homes  ou  the  wild  coast  of 


294  IN   THE  HEBRIDES. 

Harris,  are  likewise  carried  oflf  alive.  Poor  prisoners,  their  claws 
are  tied  up  to  prevent  their  fighting  by  the  way  —and  they  are 
packed  together  in  one  great  compact  black  and  blue  mass  of 
twisting,  struggling  life,  and  thus  they  are  transported  to  the  boiling- 
houses  near  Billingsgate,  where  they  meet  with  a  vast  army  of  their 
Norwegian  brethren,  and  all  share  the  same  sad  fate.  Perhaps  twenty 
thousand  arrive  from  Norway  in  one  night,  while  the  Western 
Isles  furnish  an  average  of  fifteen  thousand  ]^r  week,  and  in  some 
instances,  more  than  double  that  number. 

Shades  of  lobster  salads  !  what  food  for  nightmares  rises  before 
us,  at  the  thought  of  so  terrible  an  array  of  vengeful,  cold-blooded 
monsters,  clad  in  panoply  of  blue-grey  armour,  standing  over  us 
with  those  awful  claws  uplifted,  ready,  at  the  bidding  of  Mrs. 
Bedonebyasyoudid,  to  plunge  us  into  those  horrible  boilers,  and 
avenge  their  luckless  parents  and  kinsfolk. 

The  lobster  fisheries  are  more  profitable  now  than  in  the  last 
century,  when  about  seventy  thousand  were  annually  sent  from  the 
coast  of  Montrose  to  London,  and  there  sold  at  prices  varying  from 
three  halfpence  to  twopence  halfpenny  !  Almost  as  cheap  diet  as 
salmon,  which  varied  from  three  halfpence  to  twopence  a  pound  ! 
Those  were  the  days  when  Scotch  servants  stipulated  that  they 
should  not  be  obliged  to  dine  on  salmon  more  than  three  days 
in  the  week  !  ^  Now  the  fishers  receive  from  9«.  to  16«.  a  dozen, 
for  lobsters,  and  the  boats  engaged  in  these  fisheries  can  clear  from 
£4  to  £10  in  a  season. 

Another  large  item  in  the  contributions  of  the  Isles  to  the  main- 
land, is  a  vast  supply  of  eggs — ^not  for  human  food,  but  to  be  used 
in  the  Glasgow  caUandering  works,  to  produce  the  glaze  on  chintz. 
It  seems  that  freshness  is  no  object,  so  every  old  wife  lets  her  ^gs 
accumulate  till  she  has  enough  to  be  worth  carrying  to  the  ''mer- 
chant.*' Her  unpleasant  store  reminds  me  of  our  old  Skye  henwife, 
who  said  she  always  gave  the  nest-eggs  to  her  own  bairns.  When 
we  suggested  that  they  must  be  slightly  objectionable,  she  replied, 

^  As  an  instance  of  change  in  the  value  of  money,  I  may  note  an  entry  in 
the  houftehold  expenses  of  Edward  I.,  to  the  effect  that  eighteen  pence  had 
been  paid  for  four  hundred  Easter  eggs ! 


THE  FORDS.  295 

'^  Weel,  maybe  they're  just  some  snuffy  ! "  I  suppose  that  nest* 
eggs,  like  some  other  dainties,  require  an  educated  taste.  So  we. 
also  thought,  when  tasting  the  razor-fish  or  ''  spout-fish,"  which  the 
fisher-folk  consider  so  nutritious.  Not  all  the  art  of  a  French  cook 
could  make  those  leathery  lumps  palatable  I 

The  said  razor-fish,  so  called  from  his  inhabiting  the  long  brown 
razor  shells  that  strew  our  shores,  but  which  is  more  correctly  called 
**  solen,"  is,  however,  a  very  valuable  bait,  and  as  such,  is  sought 
even  more  eagerly  than  for  human  consumption.  He  lies  safely 
hidden  beneath  the  sands,  and  so  soon  as  he  hears  a  step  approach- 
ing, he  digs  a  deeper  hiding-place,  and  burrows  his  way  lower  and 
lower.  But  at  the  first  alarm  he  spouts  a  jet  of  water  in  the  air, 
like  a  tiny  whale,  and  thus  betrays  Ms  presence  to  the  watchful 
bait-gatherer,  who,  from  this  custom,  calls  his  hidden  treasure  the 
spout-fish.  Plunging  a  barbed  iron  rod  into  the  moist  sand,  he 
fishes  up  his  victim ;  should  he  fail  to  strike  him,  he  knows  he 
need  not  try  a  second  time,  as  the  creature  will  have  burrowed  far 
beyond  his  reach ;  but,  if  bait  is  scarce,  he  will  perhaps  sprinkle 
salt  on  the  hole,  and  then  wait  patiently  till  the  solen  rises  to  the 
surface,  and  is  captured,  to  prove  an  irresistible  dainty  to  all  manner 
of  fish. 

The  fords  on  all  sides  give  a  very  curious  character  to  this  coast. 
It  seems  so  strange  to  be  for  ever  calculatiag  tides — ^high-tide  and 
low-tide — spring-tide  and  neap  ;  with  the  knowledge  that  sometimes 
the  safe  ford  shifts,  and  that  you  may  find  yourself  in  trouble  before 
you  dream  of  it.  Hence  the  state  of  the  fords  becomes  the  marked 
topic  of  conversation ;  and  every  person  you  meet,  instead  of  making 
the  usual  comment  on  the  weather,  gives  you  the  last  news  of  the 
tide — or  wishes  you  a  dry  ford — and  a  good  ford — or  hopes  you 
may  get  a  ford  at  all — a  very  serious  matter,  as  to  miss  the  ford, 
and  have  to  stay  all  night  on  the  wrong  side  of  it,  would  involve  an 
amount  of  ''  roughing  it "  scarcely  desirable. 

The  fords  differ  much  one  from  another.  That  which  connects 
Vallay  with  North  Uist  is  an  unbroken  beach  of  hard,  white  sand, 
extending  the  whole  two  miles  from  isle  to  isle,  a  lonely  level  shore 
on  which  generally  no  sign  of  life  is  visible,  save  a  few  white* 


296  IN   THE  HEBRIDES. 

winged  sea-birds,  that  float  on  the  breeze  like  flecks  of  spray  from 
the  white  surges  beyond. 

The  next  ford  lies  between  North  Uist  and  Benbecula,  and  is 
known  as  the  Big  Ford,  being  about  four  miles  across.  Half  of 
this  lies  over  sand,  by  no  means  sound — and  the  rest  of  the  way 
is  so  intricate,  that  a  stranger  must  take  a  fisher-laddie  for  his 
guide,  along  a  track  twisting  and  turning  in  and  out  between  low 
reefs  of  black  rocks,  skirting  quicksands,  and  dangerous  holes — 
splashing  through  water  ankle-deep  or  sometimes  deeper  still , 
through  beds  of  sea-weed  and  tangle ;  altogether  a  very  labyrinth* 
The  track  is  marked  by  black  beacons,  but  many  of  these  have 
been  washed  away,  and  altogether  a  more  dismal  road  to  have  to 
travel  on  a  stormy  day,  with  a  dubious  ford  perhaps,  and  dreary 
grey  rain,  could  hardly  be  imagined ;  you  cannot  help  picturing 
the  horrors  of  sudden  illness,  or  overpowering  weariness,  detaining 
some  lonely  woman  or  child  in  that  melancholy  channel,  till  the 
waters  return  in  their  might,  whirling  along  in  the  strong  swift 
current  which  here  pours  from  the  Atlantic  to  the  Minch. 

Having  passed  this  dismal  ford,  you  find  yourself  in  bleak 
Benbecula,  a  dreary  level  of  dark  peat-moss  and  sodden  morass, 
only  diversified  by  more  of  the  shallow  lakes  which  are  so  numer- 
ous in  these  isles,  all  abounding  in  trout,  which  the  oft-times 
hungry  people  would  fain  capture  for  their  own  use,  but  which 
here,  as  elsewhere,  are  strictly  preserved. 

Strangely  enough,  the  ford  marks  a  distinct  eoclesiastical 
boundary,  the  inhabitants  of  North  Uist  being  almost  all  Pro- 
testants  (there  are  only  three  or  four  Roman  Catholic  families  on 
the  isle),  whereas  the  majority  of  the  people  of  Benbecula,  South 
Uist,  and  Barra  have  adhered  to  their  hereditary  faith,  uninfluenced 
by  the  Beformation,  a  circumstance  attributed  to  the  fact  thai 
while  Clan  Eanald  and  the  MaoNeills  (who  ruled  in  the  Southern 
Isles)  continued  faithful  to  the  Church  of  Rome,  the  Maodonalda 
encouraged  their  people  to  embrace  Uie  Protestant  faith. 

About  sixteen  hundred  human  beings  contrive  to  exist  on 
Benbecula,  and,  with  all  its  drawbacks,  hold  these  five  miles  of 
dull  peat-moss  dearer  than  any  ''large  land"  that  could  be  be- 


DRIFT-WOOD.  297 

stowed  upon  them  in  foreign  parts.  Like  most  of  its  neighbours, 
it  has  a  belt  of  white  sand  and  "  machar  land  **  on  the  western 
coast,  and  yields  a  tolerable  supply  of  potatoes  and  barley. 

But  the  casual  visitor  sees  only  one  point  of  relief  to  the  dreary 
monotony  of  the  scene,  namely,  the  ruins  of  Borve  Castle, — a  fine 
massive  keep  commanding  the  whole  isle,  but  now  most  desolate, — 
the  haunt  of  croaking  **  hoodie  craus." 

There  is  small  temptation  to  linger  here,  so  you  hurry  on  to  try 
and  save  the  next  ford,  and  so  reach  South  Uist.  This  ford  is 
only  one  mile  across ;  it  may,  however,  happen  that  you  reach  it 
only  in  time  to  see  the  waves  pouring  in,  rapidly  changing  the  ford 
to  a  sound,  which  no  boat  will  cross,  so  there  is  nothing  for  it  but 
to  wait  in  Benbecula  till  the  next  day ;  and  a  very  dreary  wait  it 
is,  as  two  of  my  friends  ^  proved  to  their  cost,  and  thankful  they 
were  to  get  a  night's  rest  in  a  house,  which  at  that  time  was,  and 
perhaps  still  is,  the  only  apology  for  an  inn.  They  noted  with  interest 
the  wood-work  of  their  room,  which  was  all  built  of  worm-eaten 
drift>wood,  with  here  and  there  rusty  nails  still  marking  its  descent 
from  some  good  ship  which  had  gone  to  pieces  on  the  rocks.  All 
the  furniture  in  the  room  was  of  the  same  sort. 

It  is  curious  to  think  of  these  treeless  islands,  where  every  atom 
of  wood  for  every  household  purpose  must  be  imported  from  afar, 
where  a  good  wreck  must  necessarily  be  looked  upon  as  a  god-send, 
and  where  day  by  day  the  tide  line  is  eagerly  scanned,  to  see  what 
treasures  mav  have  drifted  in  from  far  countries. 

For  the  wrecks  are  not  the  sole  timber  supply.  Good  logs  of 
hardwood  and  felled  trees,  as  well  as  chance  branches  and  spars, 
are  washed  ashore  from  West  Indian  and  Mexican  forests,  drifting 
along  with  the  warm  Gulf  Stream.  Bales  of  cotton,  and  bags  of 
cofEee,  Molucca  beans,  or  fairy  eggs  as  the  people  call  them,  and  all 
manner  of  quaint  treasures,  are  among  the  spoil  whicJi  rewards  the 
patient  seekers.  Sometimes  they  find  foreign  shells;  sometimes 
such  bamboos  and  fragments  of  carved  wood  as  encouraged  Colum- 
bus to  seek  for  an  unknown  world,  far  away  to  the  west ;  and 

'  Mrs.  Otter  and  Miss  Bird,  who  visited  these  Isles  with  Captain  Otter» 
R.N.,  when  engaged  on  the  Admiralty  Survey. 


298  IK  THE  HEBRIDES. 

sometimes — most  precious  prize — some  drowned  lady's  raiment, 
which  will  set  the  fashion,  no  matter  of  what  country,  for  many 
a  long  day. 

On  one  occasion  my  kinsman,  Campbell  of  Islay,  found  a  number 
of  the  graceful  marine  creatures  known  as  ''Portuguese  men-of- 
war  ''  stranded  on  a  tidal  rock  in  the  sound  of  Barra.  They  were 
still  alive,  and  he  extemporized  a  tiny  aquarium,  in  which  these 
tropical  guests  survived  for  a  little  while.  He  described  them  as 
'*  blue  transparent  things  like  a  leaf,  about  the  size  of  a  half-crown, 
with  a  membrane  like  a  lateen  sail  raised  out  of  water,  and  lots  of 
coloured  tentacles  below." 

I  have  sailed  in  many  tropical  seas,  but  have  looked  in  vain  for 
these  elegant  little  creatures,  which  floated  so  peacefully  along  on 
the  Gulf  Stream,  till  they  reached  the  rocky  shores  of  Barra. 

Live  tortoises  occasionally  drift  ashore,  not  much  the  worse  for 
their  long  voyage  ;  and  once  there  came  floating  in,  the  mast  of  a 
man-o'-war,  the  Tilbury,  which  had  been  burnt  off  Jamaica. 

Sometimes  the  wrecks  yield  stores,  the  use  of  which  sorely 
puzzles  the  simple  islanders,  as  when  a  vessel  laden  with  tea  met 
her  doom  off  Dalebeg  in  Lewis,  and  the  people  could  devise  no 
better  use  for  the  precious  cargo  than  to  use  it  as  manure,  and  to 
this  day  a  field  is  there  known  as  the  tea-field.  The  large  seeds  of 
western  forest  trees,  which  are  thus  found,  are  esteemed  great 
treasures,  and  are  worn  as  charms,  especially  by  women  whose 
progeny  is  not  so  numerous  as  they  might  wish.  One  of  these  was 
recently  presented  to  a  friend  of  mine,  with  the  assurance,  given 
quite  in  earnest,  that  a  similar  one  having  been  worn  by  another 
member  of  the  family,  had  been  the  undoubted  cause  of  the  safe 
arrival  of  a  son  and  heir !  The  commoner  seeds  are  of  two  sorts,  a 
large  purplish-brown  bean  with  a  black  band,  and  a  round  grey  one, 
both  of  which  I  have  found  in  great  abundance  on  the  shores  of 
Ceylon,  washed  down  by  the  great  rivers  which  flow  through  the 
forests,  collecting  contributions  on  their  seaward  way. 

But  precious  to  the  islanders  as  are  these  charms,  no  gift  of  the 
sea  can  compare  in  value  with  the  timber,  whether  it  comes  in 
form  of  logs  or  of  wrecks.     It  is  not  many  years  since  the  factor  of 


CORNISH  BLESSINGS.  299 

one  of  the  largest  proprietors  wrote  to  acquaint  his  employer  with 
the  joyful  fact  that,  thanks  to  Providence,  there  had  heen  three 
wrecks  in  the  early  part  of  the  winter,  so  that  the  island  was  well 
supplied  with  wood  I 

It  does  sound  curious  to  the  unaccustomed  ear  to  hear  the  quaint 
phrases  of  piety  with  which  these  spoils  of  the  deep  are  sometimes 
welcomed,  and  the  ill-concealed  regret  of  some  of  the  old  folk  at 
the  huilding  of  lighthouses,  which  have  tended  to  warn  vessels 
from  these  shores.  They  certainly  have  a  practical  helief  in  the 
proverb,  **  It's  an  ill-wind  that  blows  no  one  good  " — a  creed  which 
my  great-grandfather  1  must  assuredly  have  held  when,  in  the 
middle  of  the  last  century,  he  wrote  to  an  uncle  in  Morayshire, 
giving  an  account  of  his  wife's  estate  of  Penrose,  near  Helstone,  in 
Cornwall, 

He  says :  '*  In  my  last,  I  sent  you  enclosed  a  rent-roll  of  this 
estate,  but  I  forgot  to  mention  one  thing,  which  is  a  very  consider- 
able appurtenance  belonging  to  it,  viz.,  a  royalty  on  the  sea-coast, 
which  generally  keeps  my  cellars  well  stock't  with  wine,  brandy, 
and  many  other  valuable  comoditys.  TTieae  (kings  are  called  God's 
blessings  in  this  country  /  I  had  one  of  them  last  year  that  brought 
me  in  eight  hundred  gallons  of  French  brandy ;  another  brought 
me  ten  Jiogsheads  of  good  claret  and  frontiniack,  which  your  friend 
Bruce  seems  to  like  very  well ;  and  this  very  winter  I  have  had 
two  of  these  blessings,  one  of  which  brought  me  a  noble  stock  of 
flour,  wine,  and  bale  goods ;  the  other  brought  me  only  a  parcel  of 
hides,  log-wood,  and  some  other  trifles  that  may  be  converted  into 
cash.  These  things  are  very  convenient  in  a  large  family  in  these 
hard  times,  for  com  of  all  kinds  is  very  dear  in  this  country  at 
present,  and  I  suppose  not  much  cheaper  in  Moray.  I  would 
therefore  advise  you  to  come  and  partake  of  our  Cornish  blessings  ! " 

The  writer  might  have  added  that  he  himself  was  among  the 
''  blessings  "  thus  drifted  to  the  Cornish  shores.  For  having  sailed 
for  India,  his  ship  was  compelled  by  stress  of  weather  to  ran  into 
Falmouth,  where  he  arrived  in  time  for  a  grand  ball,  at  which  the 
young  heiress  of  Penrose  was  present.     She  expressed  her  willing- 

>  Alexander  Cumming  of  Altyre  married  Qrace  Pearse  of  Penrose. 


300  IN  THE   HEBRIDES. 

ness  to  dance  with  any  of  the  officers  ''  except  that  ugly  Scoteh- 
man  I ''  who,  nevertheless,  wooed  and  won  her  with  amazing 
velocity ;  and  we  have  good  reason  to  believe  that  she  was  well 
content  with  her  share  of  **  Cornish  blessings  ! "  ^ 

Old  ocean  pays  tribute  of  all  sorts.  Sometimes,  together  with 
rich  merchandise  from  the  ships  she  has  swallowed  up,  she  brings 
the  bodies  of  drowned  sailors,  and  lays  them  gently  down  on  the 
white  sands;  and  the  sea-faring  folk  give  them  such  a  decent 
burial  as  they  themselves  hope  to  receive,  should  they  meet  the 
like  fate. 

One  of  their  oldest  burial-grounds  is  in  South  Uist,  on  the  grassy 
top  of  a  sand-hill  overlooking  the  sea.  The  centre  is  marked  by  a 
cross  of  worm-eaten  drift-wood,  round  which  are  clustered  the  dead 
of  many  centuries.  The  people  of  the  island  are  for  the  most  part 
Boman  Catholics,  and  for  them  the  central  ground  is  reserved. 
Protestants  are  buried  in  an  outer  circle ;  while  in  a  third  circle 
are  laid  all  strangers,  and  all  the  unknown  dead  who  are  cast  up 
by  the  sea.  Some  of  these  tombs  are  marked  by  memorial-stonea 
— one  or  two  richly  carved ;  but  for  the  most  part  only  a  grassy 
mound,  with  a  few  wild  flowers,  marks  where  the  sleepers  lie  wait- 
ing so  quietly.     And  when  the  wind  whispers  and  rustles  among 

^  Still  more  recently,  the  inhabitants  of  St.  Agnes,  one  of  the  Scilly  Isles, 
were  in  the  habit  of  praying  to  St.  Wauma  that  she  would  be  pleased  to  send 
them  a  richly-freighted  merchantman,  or  any  good  ship  that  pleased  her ; 
and  should  such  a  vessel  happily  be  wrecked,  they  were  not  content  with 
appropriating  her  spoils,  but  also  murdered  any  unhappy  sailors  who  reached 
the  shores  alive ! 

The  tradition  concerning  St.  Wauriia  is  that  she  crossed  over  from  Ireland 
in  an  open  corragh,  possibly  with  a  view  to  instructing  the  Scillonians  in 
Christian  principles  !  More  probably,  however,  her  worship  is  a  relic  of  early 
Celtic  Paganism,  which  was  "  adapted  "  by  the  Christian  teachers  who  found 
it  impossible  to  suppress  her.  Saint  or  goddess,  nothing  certain  is  known 
concerning  her,  save  her  power  over  the  elements,  which  her  worshippers 
sought  to  enlist  in  the  cause  of  wrecking.  (Her  name  bears  a  singular  resem- 
blance to  Waruna  or  Varuna,  the  title  whereby  the  Supreme  God  is  addressed 
in  the  early  Hindu  hymns ;  as  Varuna,  Lord  of  the  Ocean,  Creator  of  the 
World  and  the  Planets,  Ruler  of  the  Winds.)  St  Wauma  had  a  holy  well 
into  which  her  votaries  used  to  cast  pins,  and  similar  small  offerings,  but  it 
has  now  fallen  into  disuse. 


BENBECULA  AlfD   SOUTH  UI8T.  301 

the  bent,  or  rusbea  with,  awift  swirl  over  sea  and  land,  the  islesmen 
listen  reverently,  for  they  have  still  a  lingering  belief  that  that 
swift  raahing  sound  is  caused  by  the  great  army  of  the  dead  passing 
hither  and  thithei  on  their  ghostly  missions. 

So  eerie  and  awesome  are  the  effects  of  mist,  storm,  aad  tempest, 
and  of  wUd  meteoric  l^hts,  flashing  blood-Ted,  as  they  often  do  on 
these  northern  skies,  that  it  is  small  wonder  if  these  people  cling  to 
&eir  faith  in  the  legends  of  olden  daya,  and  still  think  that  some- 
times the  strange  spirit-world  which  lies  so  near  to  them  may  mis 
itself  with  their  daily  life,  and  the  wan  grey  ghosts  of  their  fathers 
become  visible  to  their  mortal  eyes. 


Dreary  and  desolate  as  are  the  low  shores  of  Benbecula,  South 
Uist  is  more  dreary  and  more  desolate  still.  It  U  an  island  about 
wenty-five  miles  in  length  by  five  in  width,  rough  and  hilly  on 
lis  east  side,  which  is  entirely  given  over  to  sheep  (the  isle  supporta 

13  aheep,  2292  head  of  cattle,  and  916  horses).  As  on  all  these 
isles,  snch  arable  land  as  there  is  lies  on  the  western  shore,  which 
is  a  dead  flat,  intersected  by  fresh-water  lochs  abounding  in  trout. 
Here  of  course  live   most  of  the   4000  inhabitants,   and  here 


302  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

too  is  Lochdar,  the  island-home  of  Lady  Gordon  Cathcart,  who 
owns  the  whole  isle,  and  several  of  those  adjacent,  including  Ben- 
becula.  Good  fields  of  fine  rye-grass  immediately  around  the  house 
tell  of  successful  reclamation  from  the  moorland,  but  the  general 
condition  of  the  country  is  not  suggestive  of  much  satisfaction  to 
the  small  struggling  farmers. 

As  you  cross  the  ford,  from  Benbecula,  you  find  your  path  over- 
shadowed by  the  dark  mountain  mass  of  Hecla.  Then,  as  far  as 
the  eye  can  reach,  stretches  the  [endless  brown  morass,  with  more 
and  more  shallow  lakes,  only  a  few  feet  deep,  dark  and  pitch-like. 
Of  course,  in  sunshine,  all  the  rich  colours  of  mosses  and  lichens 
and  skyey  reflections  lend  beauty  enough  to  any  bit  of  uncultivated 
land  and  water,  but  when  the  whole  is  saturated  with  continuous 
rains,  and  reduced  to  one  vast  bog,  the  aspect  of  such  a  country 
must  be  depressing  indeed. 

Right  across  the  island  the  road  is  built  upon  a  natrow  stone 
causeway,  which  is  carried  in  a  straight  line  over  moor  and  moss, 
bog  and  loch,  and  which  grows  worse  and  worse  year  by  year. 
Such  miserable  human  beings  as  have  been  compelled  to  settle  in 
this  dreary  district,  having  been  evicted  from  comparatively  good 
crofts,  are  probably  poorer  and  more  wretched — their  hovels  more 
squalid,  their  filth  more  unavoidable,  than  any  others  in  the  isles — 
the  huts  clustering  together  in  the  middle  of  the  sodden  morass, 
from  which  are  dug  the  damp  turfs  which  form  both  walls  and 
roof,  and  through  these  the  rain  oozes,  falling  with  dull  drip  upon 
the  earthen  floor,  where  the  half-naked  children  crawl  about  among 
the  puddles,  which  form  even  around  the  hearth — if  such  a  word 
may  be  used  to  describe  a  mere  hollow  in  the  centre  of  the  floor, 
where  thd  sodden  peats  smoulder  as  though  they  had  not  energy  to 
burn.  Outside  of  each  threshold  lie  black  quagmires,  crossed  by 
stepping-stones — drainage  being  apparently  deemed  impossible. 
Yet  with  all  this  abundance  of  misplaced  muddy  water,  some  of 
the  townships  have  to  complain  of  the  difficulty  of  procuring  a 
supply  of  pure  water,  that  which  has  drained  through  the  peat-moss 
beiug  altogether  unfit  for  drinking  or  cooking. 

Small  wonder  that  the  children  bom  and  reared  in  such  sur- 


POTATOES  FIRST  IMPORTED.  303 

roandings  should  be  puny  and  sickly,  and  their  elders  listless  and 
dispirited,  with  no  heart  left  to  battle  against  such  circumstances. 
Existence  in  such  hovels  must  be  almost  unendurable  to  the  strong 
and  healthy,  but  what  must  it  be  in  times  of  sickness  1  The  medical 
officer  of  this  district  states  officially  that  much  fever  prevails  here, 
distinctly  due  to  under-feeding.  He  says  two  families  often  live  in 
the  same  house,  and  that  he  has  attended  eight  persons  in  one 
room,  all  ill  with  fever,  and  seven  or  eight  other  persons  were 
obliged  to  sleep  in  the  same  room  I 

The  misery  of  these  homes  suggests  a  parallel  with  some  in 
Ireland,  which  reminds  me  that  it  was  to  this  isle  of  South  Uist 
that  the  Emerald  Isle  first  gave  the  precious  boon  of  potatoes. 
They  were  imported  by  Clan  Eanald  in  the  year  1743.  At  first 
the  people  strongly  objected  to  them,  and  nine  years  elapsed  ere 
they  found  their  way  to  Barra.  Ten  years  later  we  hear  that  they 
were  the  main  food  of  the  people  for  at  least  three  months  in  the 
year.     Thence  they  soon  spread  all  over  the  Highlands. 

However  unattractive  to  the  poor  cottars  may  be  their  dwellings 
in  South  Uist,  to  a  sportsman  the  island  must  indeed  be  a  paradise 
— by  reason  of  the  vast  tribes  of  wild  duck,  snipe,  teal,  woodcocks, 
and  all  manner  of  aquatic  birds  which  haunt  the  fresh-water  lochs. 
The  grey  geese  breed  here,  and  the  poor  farmers  have  trouble 
enough  to  defend  their  little  crops  from  these  marauders,  who 
assemble  in  fiocks  of  five  or  six  hundred,  and  attack  the  fields, 
llie  barnacle-geese  winter  here  in  almost  incredible  numbers. 
Tribes  of  wild  swans  pay  an  annual  visit  to  the  coast  In  short, 
all  manner  of  feathered  fowl  here  find  a  favourite  refuge. 

Six  miles  of  sea  separate  South  Uist  from  Barra,  which  is  the 
southernmost  of  the  larger  isles  in  the  Outer  Hebrides.  It  is  about 
twelve  miles  in  length — a  wild  and  rugged  ^isle,  girt  with  dark 
rocks  and  caves,  but  with  deep  bays  gleaming  with  the  finest  white 
shell-sand — ^well-nigh  as  white  as  the  searfoam  which  breaks  upon 
the  shore.  Yet  though  its  granite  ribs  crop  out  in  all  directions,  it 
is  emphatically  a  green  isle,  and  its  pasturage  and  that  of  the  Isle 
of  Yatersay,  which  lies  immediately  to  the  south,  is  said  to  be 
richer  than  that  of  any  other  isles  in  the  group.    On  Yatersay  1200 


304  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

sheep  and  400  head  of  cattle  find  luxutiant  grazing.  One  might 
fancy  that  whatever  other  hardships  these  islanders  had  to  endure, 
they  might  at  least  be  secare  of  good  dairy  produce,  but  the  great 
want  of  milk  for  themselves  and  their  children  is  one  of  their  sorest 
grievances. 

In  days  of  old,  Barra  belonged  to  the  Macdonalds  of  Clanranald, 
and  McNeill  of  Barra.  But  about  the  year  1838,  it  was  purchased 
by  Colonel  Gordon  of  Cluny,  together  with  South  Uist,  Benbecula, 
Yatersay,  and  the  small  adjacent  isles,  at  a  cost  of  upwards  of 
£173,000.  It  may  certainly  be  described  as  "  a  fancy  property," 
quite  unique,  and  affording  its  proprietor  an  abundant  field  for 
unremunerative  outlay.  Fortunately  for  the  inhabitants,  these  isles 
are  now  the  property  of  Lady  Gordon  Cathcart,  who  not  only  takes 
the  keenest  interest  in  their  welfare,  but  is  blessed  with  such 
abundant  means  as  have  already  enabled  her  to  carry  out  many 
wise  and  philanthropic  measures,  with  a  view  to  teaching  her  people 
how  best  to  help  themselves.  Her  position,  as  proprietrix  of  most 
flourishing  fishing  villages  on  the  east  coast  of  Scotland  (whence, 
year  after  year,  scores  of  energetic  fishers  sail  to  these  Hebrideaii 
waters  and  reap  rich  harvests  from  the  herring  shoals — often  ero 
the  Islesmen  have  realized  that  the  herring  have  come,  and  perhaps 
gone  again),  gives  her  exceptional  knowledge  of  fisher  folk,  and 
how  best  to  enable  them  to  help  themselves,  and  to  this  most 
difficult  problem  she  has  applied  both  heart  and  mind. 

Ilere,  as  elsewhere  in  the  isles,  the  problem  is  rendered  doubly 
difficult  by  the  necessity  which  compels  all  the  people  to  combine  the 
professions  of  fishing  and  farming,  instead  of  doing  either  thoroughly, 
so  the  valuable  cod,  ling,  lobster,  and  even  herring  fisheries,  remain 
only  partially  developed,  because  the  fishers  must  needs  bestow 
half  their  time  and  energy  on  tilling  rocky  and  exhausted  land 
which  can  no  longer  yield  them  her  increase. 

Nature  has  endowed  Barra  with  one  priceless  boon,  in  the 
excellent  harbour  of  Kisimul,  or  Castle  Bay,  which  affords  secure 
anchorage  in  deep  water,  in  all  conditions  of  the  tide.  It  is  land- 
locked by  the  green  Isle  of  Vatersay,  and  being  accessible  from 
either  the  Atlantic  on  the  one  side,  or  the  Miuch  on  the  other, 


KISIMUL  CASTLE.  303 

affords  a  secure  harbour  of  refuge  for  ships  of  heavy  tonnage,  when 
overtaken  by  sudden  storms. 

Here  in  the  spring  the  herring  fleets  congregate  from  all  quarters, 
east  and  west  coast,  and  from  three  to  four  hundred  boats  (averaging 
from  fifteen  to  twenty-five  tons  burden)  bring  a  temporary  stir  to 
its  quiet  waters.  At  this  season  perhaps  a  couple  of  thousand 
people  connected  with  the  fisheries  assemble  on  the  shores  of  Castle 
Bay  and  Yatersay,  all  in  the  employment  of  a  small  regiment  of 
fish-curers,  who  run  up  temporary  huts  and  bothies,  surrounded  by 
piles  of  barrels,  destined  to  convey  the  captured  herring  shoals  to 
the  continental  markets  of  St.  Petersburg,  Konigsberg,  Dantzic, 
Hamburg,  and  Stettin. 

On  a  rocky  islet  in  a  comer  of  the  bay,  stand  the  massive 
ruins  of  Kisimul  Castle,  to  which  the  harbour  owes  its  name — the 
old  dwelling  of  the  McNeills  of  Barra — and  perhaps  the  most 
picturesque  thing  in  the  Hebrides,  having  a  strong  likeness  to 
Chillon,  as  it  rises  from  the  waters  with  its  fine  hilly  background. 
Drawing  near  to  the  stately  old  keep,  it  seems  to  be  thickly  covered 
with  the  greenest  ivy,  which,  on  closer  inspection,  proves  to  be  a 
clinging  drapery  of  the  Asplenium  martnum. 

For  those  who  love  wild  flowers,  these  islands  offer  various 
treasures.  For  instance,  in  the  rocky  Isle  of  Eriskay,  in  Barra 
Sound,  a  lovely  blue  flower,  something  like  a  convolvulus,  with 
waxy  leaf,  blooms  in  July  and  August.  As  it  is  unknown  else- 
where, the  people  account  for  its  presence  by  saying  that  Prince 
Charlie  brought  some  seeds  from  Normandy,  and  sowed  them  here 
in  some  idle  moment,  in  those  summer  days  which  he  spent  here, 
when,  in  July  1745,  he  arrived  with  one  small  frigate  of  sixteen 
guns,  with  a  little  handful  of  faithful  adherents,  to  reclaim  the 
crown  of  Britain. 

The  castle  of  Kisimul  is  about  seven  hundred  years  old.  When 
Martin  visited  it  two  hundred  years  ago,  he  found  guards  and 
sentries  still  posted,  on  the  watch  for  possible  surprise.  Over  the 
gate,  a  "  gockman "  spent  the  night  thus  pleasantly  watching  for 
the  foe  who  never  came,  repeating  warlike  rhymes  to  keep  himself 

awake,  and  hurling  stones  at  possible  invaders.     In  the  rocks 

z 


306  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

below,  a  dock  was  cut,  wherein  McNeill's  galley  might  lie  in  perfect 
safety,  with  the  additional  defence  of  a  strong  sea-wall.  Thence 
he  was  wont  to  sally  forth,  and  carry  terror  through  the  isles,  as 
his  Danish  predecessors  had  done  before  him ;  for  old  as  is  this 
wave-washed,  weather-beaten  fortress,  it  was  built  on  the  site  of  one 
yery  much  older,  called  by  the  Danes  Tur  Leoid,  under  the  walls  of 
which  lay  a  fleet  of  Danish  galleys  always  ready  for  action. 

McNeill  kept  up  the  warlike  character  of  his  ancestry,  and  in  the 
hour  of  need  could  count  on  two  hundred  fighting  men  ready  to  fly- 
to  arms  at  the  summons  of  their  chief,  his  estates  extending  as  far 
as  Lochboisdale. 

The  ancient  burial>place  of  the  McNeills  was  at  Eilbar,  now 
ruinous,  and  overgrown  with  nettles  and  rank  weeds.  Two  small 
chapels  remain,  dedicated  to  St.  Barr — one  of  those  dubious  early 
Christians  not  recognized  by  the  Eomish  calendar,  whose  memory, 
however,  is  still  honoured  by  the  people  who  come  here  annually 
to  perform  the  Deisuly  and  go  thrice  round  the  ruins,  following  the 
course  of  the  sun. 

The  population  of  Barra,  numbering  nearly  2000  persons,  are 
nearly  all  Roman  Catholics,  not  more  than  about  twenty  children 
of  Protestant  parents  being  in  attendance  at  the  four  parish  schools. 
The  people  are  generally  a  cheerful  race — ^very  diflerent  from  the 
saddened  dwellers  in  the  bogs  of  South  TJist,  though  their  homes 
are  much  the  same,  with  only  one  hole  in  the  thatch  to  admit  light, 
and  emit  smoke.  The  fire  bums  in  a  hollow  in  the  middle  of  the 
floor,  and  round  it  gather  all  the  picturesque  details  of  such  an 
interior — the  cattle  on  one  side,  the  human  beings  on  the  other ; 
the  big  black  pot,  the  heaps  of  fishing-nets,  or  tarry  wool,  and  the 
blue  peat  smoke  veiling  alL 

Barra,  like  the  neighbouring  isles,  is  rich  in  ruined  forts  and 
duns.  It  has  sundry  little  lochs  swarming  with  trout,  and  on 
several  of  these,  now  quiet  tarns,  a  fortified  island  reminds  this 
peaceful  generation  of  their  turbulent  ancestors. 

There  were,  however,  certain  curious  statistics  published  not 
many  years  ago,  which  tend  to  show  that  however  kindly  these  good 
folk  may  be  among  themselves,  some  of  them  recently  retained 


BARBA  AND  SOUTH  BERNEBA.  307 

curious  laws  of  morality  as  regards  the  strangers  whom  ocean  casts 
on  their  hospitality;  like  the  Ishmaelites  of  old,  their  hand  is 
said  to  be  against  every  man ;  but  unlike  them,  these  Sea-Arabs 
have  small  regard  for  the  rights  of  their  guests,  in  the  matter  of 
wrecked  property.  The  stories  of  grasping  and  dishonesty  con- 
nected with  the  securing  of  such  heaven-sent  cargoes  sound  rather 
like  legends  of  the  days  when  the  men  of  Barra  were  notorious 
pirates,  than  like  true  narratives  of  the  nineteenth  century.  We 
hear  how  the  survivors  of  such  wrecks  have  been  pitilessly  plundered 
of  what  little  they  had  contrived  to  save ;  while  heavy  bills  for 
service  rendered,  were  sent  in  to  the  authorities. 

Such  was  the  case  of  the  Bermuda,  which  was  driven  ashore 
some  years  ago  in  a  wild  wintiy  gale.  The  captain  related  how 
after  long  tossing  in  a  fierce  tempest  his  ship  was  cast  upon  the 
sands  of  Barra.  All  lives  were  saved — but  the  scene  of  lawlessness 
at  the  wreck  was  something  indescribable.  Everybody  began  to 
rifle,  rob,  and  plunder — and  such  was  the  effect  on  the  crew  of  the 
vessel,  that,  notwithstanding  their  recent  escapes  irom  peril,  they 
joined  in  and  plundered  too.  Meanwhile  the  captain's  wife  and 
little  daughter  were  left  to  shiver  on  the  beach,  while  the  driving 
snoWi  fell  fast  Benumbed,  bewildered,  half  dead  with  fright  and 
cold,  they  were  surely  fit  objects  for  mercy ;  but  the  tender  mercies 
of  the  wreckers  were  cruel  indeed,  for  taking  the  boots  and  plaids 
of  the  helpless  woman  and  child,  they  departed  leaving  them  half 
dead.  The  captain,  who  had  been  a  powerless  spectator  of  the 
scene,  had  no  redress,  save  the  recounting  of  his  woes  to  the 
nominal  authorities.  Tet  these  harpies  of  the  shore  consider 
themselves  most  zealous  Christians,  and  will  on  no  account  put  to 
sea  without  the  blessing  of  the  priest  and  the  safeguard  of  holy 
water ! 

Sixteen  miles  to  the  south  of  Barra  lies  South  Bemera,  about  a 

mile  long  by  half  a  mile  broad ;  the  uttermost  isle,  a  bold  mass  of 

dark  gneiss  sloping  down  gradually  towards  the  east,  but  presenting 

to  the  western  waves  a  grand  rocky  rampart  crowned  with  such  a 

lighthouse  of  iron  and  granite,  as  may  defy  the  wildest  tempest^ 

and  warn  all  mariners  to  keep  well  away  from  this  deadly  coasL 

z  2 


308 


IN   THE  HEBRIDES. 


In  dear  weather  this  light  is  visible  at  a  distance  of  thirty-three 
miles,  but  it  is  said  that  the  height  of  the  tower  itself  (fifty  feet), 
and  the  fact  of  its  being  perched  on  a  cliff  nearly  seven  hundred 
feet  above  the  sea,  actually  diminishes  its  value,  as  its  light  is  often 
shrouded  in  mist,  when  all  is  clear  below.  It  is  a  strange  life  of 
exile,  which  falls  to  the  lot  of  the  lighthouse  men,  living  on  so 
remote  an  isle,  with  only  one  possible  landing-place ;  a  shelving 
ledge  of  rock,  on  to  which,  if  you  are  expert,  you  may  jump,  as 
your  boat  rises  on  the  crest  of  a  wave,  and  thence  scramble  up  a 
slippery  shelving  rock,  and  then  up  a  steep  ravine,  to  the  summit  of 
the  isle.  It  is  only  in  the  summer  months  that  even  this  is  possible. 
During  the  long  winter,  with  its  nights  of  sixteen  dark  hours,  no 
vessel  ventures  within  miles  of  the  island,  and  a  distant  glimpse  of 
a  sail  on  the  horizon  is  a  noteworthy  event. 

For  two  hours  in  April,  and  two  hours  in  June,  a  steamboat 
devotes  its  attention  to  the  lighthouse  stores ;  and  once  a  year, 
a  priest  from  Barra  visits  his  little  flock ;  otherwise  the  forty 
islanders  are  happily  independent  of  all  outer  influences,  and  a  fine, 
hardy,  self-reliant  race  they  seem  to  be.  This  sad  year,  alas  !  the 
wail  of  want  and  suffering  rises  from  each  one  of  these  far  isles, 
where  the  pressure  of  dire  poverty  is  making  itself  felt  as  sor^y  as 
on  the  larger  isles  ;  only,  as  inhabitants  are  fewer,  the  task  of  relief 
seems  less  hopeless.^ 

On  the  occasion  of  Captain  Otter's  surveying  expedition  here,  so 
soon  as  the  Shamrock  anchored  off  South  Bernera,  one  man  dived 
like  a  South-sea  Islander,  and  came  on  board,  but  the  sight  of  the 
black  cook  was  a  very  great  shock  to  his  nerves,  as  it  subsequently 
was  to  those  of  his  fellows ;  being  almost  entirely  in  accordance 
with  their  satanic  theories.     They  made  much  of  their  rare  guests, 

^  In  glsDcing  at  the  census  for  1881,  I  am  struck  by  the  number  of  little 
isles  with  a  population  of  six  or  fewer  persons.  I  find  fifteen  islets,  on  each 
of  which  lives  one  family ;  and  six  isles  with  two  families. 

Of  the  larger  isles,  of  which  I  have  spoken,  the  population  is  as  follows : — 


Skye  ... 
Lewis 
North  Uist 
South  Uist 


16,889 

28,3^9 

3371 

3825 


Benbecula 
Barra 
Bernera 
Mingalay 


1661 

1869 

452 

150 


ISLE  OF  MINOALAY.  309 

for  whose  entertainment  they  produced  bowls  of  rich  cream.  The 
ladies'  di^esses  were  examined  with  great  interest  by  the  lassies,  who 
had  only  once  before  seen  a  lady.  They  were  themselves  dressed 
in  good  striped  winceys  of  their  own  spinning. 

They  had  only  two  petitions  to  make  to  their  visitors.  The  first 
and  most  earnest,  was  that  a  teacher  might  be  sent  them  for  their 
children ;  they  would  willingly  do  all  in  their  power  for  his  mainten- 
ance, if  only  he  were  sent.  The  other  request  was  for  any  extra 
spars  which  they  could  use  as  bird  poles.  Bits  of  rope  or  sail 
would  also  have  been  precious.  The  abundance  of  ordinary  drift- 
wood was  suggested  by  the  amount  of  furniture  in  the  houses. 

Of  course  the  people  are  dependent  on  the  sea-fowl,  whose  flesh 
they  salt  and  eat,  and  whose  feathers  not  only  supply  their  bedding, 
but,  together  with  dried  fish,  enable  them  to  buy  tea  and  tobacco 
from  the  outer  world.  Their  most  successful  times  and  seasons 
for  capturing  these  wild  beautiful  birds,  are  the  storms,  when  mad 
hurricanes  are  raging,  and  tossing  the  sea-spray  over  the  land. 
Then  the  very  birds  are  bewildered,  and  instead  of  flying  straight 
to  their  nests  in  the  clitf,  are  swept  beyond  their  mark,  and  the 
islander  (who  is  patiently  lying  on  his  back  on  the  very  verge  of 
the  cliff,  with  his  head  to  the  sea,  armed  with  a  long  pole)  strikes 
the  bird  with  swift,  dexterous  hand,  and  rarely  misses  his  aim.  It 
is  curious,  in  thinking  how  our  luxuries  come  from  other  men's 
toils,  to  trace  even  our  warm  downy  feather-beds  to  such  battling 
with  bitter  cold  and  tempest  as  falls  to  the  lot  of  these  fowlers  I 

One  trace  of  olden  days  remains  on  South  Bemera,  to  puzzle 
antiquarians.  It  is  a  wall  about  thirty  feet  high  and  two  feet  in 
thickness,  stretching  right  across  the  precipitous  end  of  the  island 
just  beyond  the  lighthouse,  for  what  purpose  no  one  can  imagine. 
The  stones  of  which  it  is  built,  are  described  as  being  ten  inches 
long,  wedge-shaped  at  both  ends,  and  fitting  into  each  other  with 
extreme  regularity  and  nicety. 

One  mile  from  South  Bemera  lies  the  Isle  of  Mingalay  (likewise 
a  mighty  mass  of  Laurentian  gneiss).  Its  black  crags  and  preci- 
pices are  even  grander  than  those  of  its  neighbours,  rising  a  thousand 
feet  from  the  sea.    These  also  are,  in  summer,  literally  white  with 


310  IN   THE  HEBRIDES. 

the  myriads  of  sea-fowl  of  every  species,  while  the  whole  air  seems 
to  quiver  with  the  soft  fluttering  cloud  of  white  and  grey  wings. 
The  account  of  their  proceedings  is  very  curious.     The  orderly 
manner  in  which  each  tribe  keeps  possession  of  its  own  allotted 
space ;  and  the  regularity  with  which  in  the  first  week  of  February 
all  the  birds  arrive,  devote  some  hours  to  house-cleaning,  then  vanish 
again,  only  returning  at  intervals  till  May,  when  they  lay  their  eggs. 
Then  come  the  cares  of  their  vast  nursery  and  the  education 
of    the  young  birds,  and    when  that    is    completed,  the   whole 
legion  departs,  no  one  knows  whither,  but  the  islanders  sadly 
watch  the  last  quivering  cloud  vanish  on  the  horizon,  while  a 
melancholy  silence  reigns  on  the  great  cliffs,  and  for  seven  months 
the  mad  tossing  waves  have  it  all  to  themselves,  and  are  the  only 
signs  of  life  and  motion,  as  the  snowy  surges  dash  through  every 
cleft  and  fissure  of  the  dark  rocks.     And  in  truth  here  rocks  reign 
supreme,  for  all  round  the  isle  there  is  not  even  the  tiniest  belt  of 
soft  sea-sand,  where  the  little  bairns  may  play  in  safety  and  gather 
treasures  of  the  tide. 


As  a  matter  of  course,  a  traveller  sees  only  the  picturesque  side  of 
life  in  these  wild  regions.  It  may  perhaps  be  well  to  glance  at  some 
phases  of  real  life  in  the  nineteenth  century  as  suggested  by  the 
evidence  given  before  the  Boyal  Commission  in  June  1883. 

Here  are  a  few  extracts.  At  lioch  Eport,  in  North  Uist,  the  crofters 
told  how  **  repeated  evictions  from  other  districts  were  the  cause  of  so 
many  townships  being  overcrowded."  These  commenced  about  sixty 
years  ago,  and  continued  till  1850,  by  which  time  all  the  inhabitants 
of  a  large  district  had  been  ruthlessly  evicted.  The  lands  which  they 
had  held  were  fertile,  and  there  they  had  Hved  prosperously  "  in  ease 
and  plenty.'^ 

They  were  allowed  no  voice  whatever  in  their  future  destination. 
<<  Many  were  compelled  to  emigrate  to  the  colonies,  and  in  one  ship 
conveying  them,  fever  broke  out,  to  which  many  succumbed.  Others 
who  remained  in  the  island  got  comers  in  other  places,  while  the 


crofters'  evidence.  311 

remainder  were  supplied  with  labour  by  tbe  Highland  Committee, 
until  finally  sent  to  Loch  Eport,  where  they  still  struggled  to  exist. 

**  The  hardships  to  which  these  latter  were  exposed  between  their 
eviction  and  their  settlement  in  Loch  Eport  were  beyond  description* 
The  houses  were  knocked  down  about  their  ears,  and  they  got  no 
compensation  for  anything  on  the  ground.  They  got  no  assistance  in 
building  their  new  houses.  It  was  towards  the  end  of  the  year,  in 
winter,  that  they  were  building  their  temporary  houses. 

'*  The  severities  of  the  winter,  living  in  rude  turf  huts,  and  without 
fuel,  except  wJuU  they  had  to  carry  twelve  miles,  told  on  the  health  of 
many.  The  inferiority  of  the  soil  they  now  lived  on,  and  its  unsuit- 
ableness  for  human  existence,  was  indescribable.  Notwithstanding 
that,  they  had  laboured  to  improve  it  for  thirty  years.  The  crofts 
would  not  3rield  them  as  much  food  on  an  average  as  would  support 
their  families  for  two  months  of  the  year.  The  ground  was  of  such  a 
nature  that  it  could  scarcely  be  improved,  and  the  soil  was  so  much 
reduced  by  continual  cropping,  that  it  was  almost  useless.  The 
place,  too,  was  over-crowded,  there  being  thirty  crofts,  on  which  forty 
families  Hved,  where  formerly  there  were  only  three. 

'*  The  common  pasture,  if  it  could  be  called  by  that  name,  was  ex« 
tremely  bad,  so  much  so,  that  in  winter  those  of  the  people  who  had 
cattle,  had  to  keep  constant  watch,  else  they  would  stick  in  the  bogs. 
Human  beings  could  not  travel  over  portions  of  their  crofts  in  winter. 
The  people  were  at  present  in  poverty,  and  suffering  privations  and 
inconveniences  of  a  nature  to  which  the  bulk  of  their  countrymen 
were  strangers.  They  earnestly  prayed  that  the  Oommission  would 
recommend  their  removal  to  some  other  place  where  they  could  live 
by  the  productions  of  their  labours  on  the  soiL" 

Very  similar  are  the  accounts  given  of  the  clearances  of  whole  dis- 
tricts in  various  parts  of  the  group.  For  example,  a  witness  from 
Ferrinlea  says — '*  The  clearances  commenced  about  seventy  years  ago. 
M'Caskill  had  only  Ehudunan  in  his  possession  at  that  time,  and  Glen- 
brittle  was  occupied  by  crofters  in  comfortable  circumstances,  and  he 
cleared  it  and  made  a  sheep  run  of  it.  There  was  then  a  church  in 
Gleniner,  and  there  is  nobody  there  now  to  use  it.  The  church  is  in 
ruins,  and  the  manse  is  converted  into  a  shepherd's  house.  About  a 
dozen  fieimilies,  all  in  comfortable  circumstances,  were  removed  from 
Tusdala  Some  went  abroad,  and  others  went  to  various  parts  of  the 
country. 


312  IN   THE  HEBRIDES. 

*' There  used  to  be  sixteeB  families  in  Crickemisli,  and  there  is 
nobody  there  now  but  a  shepherd  from  other  townships.  The  big 
township  of  Ferrinlea,  which  was  occupied  by  thirty  families,  was 
cleared.  A  township  in  Minginish,  with  twelve  families,  was  removed, 
and  a  place  called  Lecachlerish  was  cleared,  and  the  people  scattered 
throughout  the  world.  When  the  present  tacksman  of  Talisker  got  the 
tack  thirty-three  years  ago,  he  deprived  the  cottars  of  the  gnudngs 
which  they  had,  and  for  twenty  years  they  could  not  get  any.  He  also 
took  from  us  our  peat-moss,  and  gave  us  a  bog  which  neither  man  nor 
beast  had  used  up  to  that  time.  He  measured  it  out  to  us  by  the  yard. 
The  cottars  who  had  been  left  by  M^CaskiU  at  Fiscavaig  were  also 
deprived  of  their  peat-moss.  They  got  for  it  a  piece  of  bad  land,  which 
could  not  be  called  earth  or  moss.  They  had  to  cut  it  for  fuel.  Then 
he  removed  ten  cottar  families  who  had  been  left  by  M'Caskill  at 
Tortenan,  Fhirich,  and  ten  or  eleven  from  Fiscavaig,  and  put  them  in 
Ferrinlea,  dividing  the  existing  holdings  to  do  so.  We  were  obliged  to 
work  for  the  tacksman  of  Talisker  whenever  he  required  us.  The 
strongest  man,  though  he  be  as  strong  as  Samson,  only  gets  la.  a  day, 
and  the  women  6(2.  We  have  often  to  walk  nine  or  ten  miles  to  attend 
to  his  work.*' 

The  evidence  of  a  representative  fisherman  and  crofter  of  Coillemore, 
Sconser^  in  the  Isle  of  Skye,  suggests  that  the  joy  of  the  deer- stalker 
may  mean  grief  to  his  poor  brethren.  He  tells  how  they  have  some 
arable  ground  and  pasture,  and  each  crofter  is  allowed  a  cow  and  a  cat, 
but  no  dog.  They  are  not  allowed  to  graze  any  sheep  on  their  pasture 
in  case  they  should  stray  on  the  deer  forest.  Nevertheless,  sheep  from 
adjoining  large  farms  come  down  upon  their  grazings,  and  their  crops 
are  eaten  up  by  the  deer.  "  There  were /our  ioumshipa  cleared  thirteen 
years  ago  to  make  room  for  the  deer,  and  a  large  number  of  those  evicted 
were  brought  down  to  our  village,  in  which  there  were  thirteen  bigger 
and  fourteen  smaller  crofts.  My  great-grandfather  and  four  others 
once  occupied  the  whole  of  Coillemore.  We  cannot  keep  the  strange 
sheep  off  our  grazings,  because  our  herd  is  not  allowed  to  keep  a  dog.*' 

Another  witness  says — *'  In  our  township  we  are  very  much  troubled 
by  the  deer.  I  had  a  dog  to  protect  my  crops,  but  a  gamekeeper, 
named  Bobert  M'Qregor,  came  down  to  my  lot  and  shot  it  in  presence 
of  my  wife  and  mysel£    I  complained  to  the  Fiscal  about  it. 

'*  Did  he  prosecute  the  case  ? 


crofter's  evidence.  313 

'*  The  answer  I  got  firom  the  Fiscal  was  that  the  factor  was  saying 
that  we  had  no  right  to  keep  a  dog.  Nothing  was  done  in  the  case. 
We  haye  heen  making  complaints  for  years  about  the  deer.  When 
we  complained  to  the  factor,  he  said  that  if  we  were  not  satisfied  we 
could  throw  our  place  up. 

"  The  deer  forest  marches  with  our  hill  pasture,  and  the  deer  come 
across  it  and  trespass  upon  us.  Neither  we  nor  our  sheep  are  allowed 
on  our  own  pasture  at  the  shooting  season  when  the  huntsman  comes 
round,  and  our  sheep  then  are  not  allowed  on  the  hill. 

"  What  do  you  do  when  the  deer  come  on  your  arable  ground  ? 

'*  We  have  to  watch  them  at  night 

*'  Did  anybody  ever  kill  a  deer  that  came  on  his  arable  land  P 

"We  dare  not. 

"  What  would  happen  to  you  if  you  did  ? 

"  I  would  be  evicted  from  the  place.  The  deer  are  eating  our  oats. 
We  need  to  be  protected  from  them.  We  have  been  promised  com- 
pensation, but  we  never  got  any.  We  have  to  stand  the  loss  ourselves, 
though  the  land  is  refusing  to  yield  crop,  and  the  seed  of  one  year 
will  not  yield  sufficient  to  sow  the  next.  But  we  must  pay  rent  to 
the  uttermost  penny.  For  the  same  land,  less  the  grazings  we  had, 
the  rent  is  now  more  than  a  hundred  pounds  higher  than  it  was. 

*'  The  Sconser  houses  are  worse  than  any  in  Skye.  The  gamekeepers 
prevent  the  people  taking  thatch  from  the  forest.  There  is  nowhere 
else  to  get  it    They  also  object  to  the  people  taking  heather  for  ropes. 

A  neighbour 'of  mine  went  out  to  cut  heather  on  our  pasture  for  ropes, 
and  the  huntsmen  came  upon  him,  and  threatened  to  shoot  him  if 
they  found  him  there  again.  They  were  afraid  we  would  disturb  the 
muirfowl. 

A  crofter  from  Milovaig  says — 

"  We  have  very  miserable  dwellings,  and  never  get  aid  to  build  better 
houses.  They  are  thatched  with  straw,  and  as  our  crofts  do  not 
produce  the  amount  of  straw  necessary  for  fodder  and  thatch  for  our 
houses,  and  we  are  prohibited  from  cutting  rashes  or  pulling  heather, 
the  condition  of  our  dwelling-houses  in  rainy  weather  is  most  deplor- 
able. Above  our  beds  comes  down  pattering  rain,  rendered  dirty  and 
black  by  the  soot  in  the  ceiling  above,  and,  in  consequence,  the  in- 
mates of  the  beds  have  to  look  for  shelter  from  the  rain  in  some  dry 
place  on  the  leeeide  of  the  house.    Out  of  twenty  crofters'  houses 


314  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

there  are  only  two  in  which  the  cattle  are  not  under  the  eame  roof 
with  the  family." 

Dr.  Eraser  of  Edinbane  in  Skye  is  asked — 

''Are  you  aware  of  any  cases  of  disease  which  can  be  distinctly 
traced  to  the  habits  and  food  of  the  people  ? 

**  I  have  seen  a  good  deal  of  scrofulous  disease,  a  good  deal  of  lung 
disease,  and  a  large  proportion  of  eye  disease,  due  to  the  houses, 
feeding,  and  want  of  clothing.  I  think  the  diet  of  the  people  much 
too  limited,  even  in  a  good  year — potatoes,  fish,  and  meal.  1  do  not 
see  any  permanent  remedy.  There  are  too  many  people  on  the  land, 
and  I  do  not  see  how  you  are  to  get  rid  of  them.  I  am  quite  satis- 
fied that  the  crofts  are  too  small.  As  a  general  rule,  the  people  all 
wish  to  be  crofters. 

*'  Do  you  think  the  want  of  food  is  the  cause  of  the  people  remaining 
comparatively  idle  during  the  winter  months?  The  people  in  this 
country  do  not  display  great  energy  in  cultivating  their  crofts  in  the 
winter  months  P 

''  They  do  not.  I  am  sure  they  feel  very  much  less  inclined  to  work 
when  they  are  not  well  fed.    I  believe  so  from  what  I  feel  myself. 

''Were  their  food  better,  do  you  consider  they  would  display  more 
energy  ? 

"  1  am  sure  they  would.  There  are  no  better  navvies,  as  an  average, 
than  the  Skye  men ;  but  then  they  are  having  beef  three  times  a  day.' 

I  may  quote  some  passages  from  the  evidence  of  men  who,  when 
evicted  from  their  crofts  on  the  mainland,  were  compelled  to  seek  for 
quarters  on  the  wretched  Isle  of  Soa. 

"  Donald  M'Queen,  catechist,  said-  -I  do  not  know  exactly  how  old  I 
am,  but  my  age  is  more  than  ninety  years  at  any  rate.  When  I  was 
young,  1  went  as  a  teacher  to  the  island  of  Soa — to  the  first  English 
school  there.  I  remember  that  when  1  was  young,  it  was  the  custom 
for  the  people  to  have  sheep,  horses,  and  cattle  upon  the  hill,  and  to 
live  in  shielings. 

'*The  Chairman — From  your  recollection,  do  you  think  that  the 
people  in  those  days  were  better  off  and  happier  than  they  are  now  ? 
A, — ^Is  it  not  likely  that  they  would  be  better  off  and  more  contented 
when  they  had  cattle,  sheep,  and  horses  of  their  own  in  plenty,  which 
they  have  not  to-day  ? 

*'  Alex.  Mackaskill,  cottar  and  boatman.  Isle  of  Soa,  said — ^My  great- 
grandfather  served  with  the  army.     My  grandfather  was  forced  to  go 


BAD  LAND  FOR  GOOD.  315 

to  the  army,  and  Hs  bones  are  bleaching  in  a  West  India  island.  My 
father  was  in  the  militia ;  my  brother  was  in  Her  Maje8ty*s  navy  till 
the  time  of  his  death,  and  now  the  grandson  of  my  grandfather  is  on 
a  rocky  island  that  is  not  fit  to  be  inhabited.  In  Soa  we  pay  £3  of 
rent.  At  first  the  agreement  was  that  we  were  to  have  four  milk 
goats,  a  cow,  and  ten  sheep.  The  farmer  by  degrees  reduced  the 
number  of  our  cows.  He  did  not  reduce  the  rent  a  farthing.  There 
are  twenty-three  families  on  the  island.  The  crofts  are  on  bogs  and 
rocks.  When  you  put  your  foot  on  some  parts  the  ground  shifts  so 
much  that  you  would  think  you  were  standing  at  the  foot  of  Mount 
Etna. 

'*  John  M'Bae,  35,  cottar  and  fisherman,  Soa,  said  —  I  heard  the 
former  delegate's  statement  regarding  the  condition  of  the  people  of 
Soa,  and  I  agree  with  it  I  could  not  put  down  potatoes  or  oats  this 
year,  because  the  groxmd  was  so  soft.  It  is  nothing  but  pits  or  rocks. 
I  have  been  getting  bits  of  land  from  my  neighbours  to  plant  my 
potatoes,  and  my  father  was  that  way  before  me.  I  have  no  place  on 
which  to  build  a  house.  My  present  house  is  built  on  the  sea-shore, 
and  the  tide  rises  to  it  every  stormy  night  that  comes.  I  have  to  watch 
and  put  out  all  my  furniture,  such  as  it  is.  A  sister  of  mine  was 
employed  last  winter  putting  out  the  furniture,  and  she  was  sickly, 
and  died  in  consequence.  /  triedy  by  carrying  same  peat  $oil  on  my  hack^ 
to  make  a  bit  of  land,  but  it  defied  me.  The  ground  is  so  soft  about  me 
that  /  had  to  pave  a  way  with  stones  for  my  cow  to  get  to  the  hiU.  I 
never  saw  a  place  in  Scotland,  Ireland,  or  France  so  bad  for  man  to 
live  in. 

"  By  the  Chairman — I  have  been  a  yachtsman. 

"  I  quite  agree  that  the  only  remedy  for  us  is  to  be  removed  from  the 
island  altogether.  I  have  to  pay  5s.  a  boll  for  meal,  bring  it  to  Loch 
Slapin,  and,  after  that,  I  have  to  bring  it  eighteen  miles  further,  to 
Soa,  in  a  boat  It  may  happen  that  I  have  to  spend  15j.  to  £1  in 
lodgings  when  the  weather  is  stormy,  and  I  cannot  get  to  the  island, 
and  those  at  home  starving.  My  brother  also  had  a  house  near  my 
place,  and  the  tide  destroyed  it. 

**  By  Sheriff  Xicolson— We  are  all  fishermen  in  Soa.  There  are  at 
present  upwards  of  100  people  in  Soa. 

'*  By  the  Chairman — I  just  manage  to  keep  soul  and  body  together. 
I  was  forty  years  roaming  at  sea,  and  my  reason  for  staying  on  the 
island  was  just  to  keep  my  aged  parents  out  of  the  poor-house. 

"  Sixty  years  ago,  before  the  evictions  took  place,  there  was  only  a 


316  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

herd  on  Soa.  It  was  in  consequence  of  the  dearing  out  of  the  people  on 
the  mainland  that  they  were  glad  to  go  there  for  a  ho-me. 

**  Sheriff  Nicolsoa — Is  there  not  a  good  deal  of  arable  land  in  Ullinish 
and  Ebost,  where  fine  crops  were  grown  forty  years  ago,  and  where 
heather  and  ferns  are  growing  now  ?    A, — There  is  plenty  of  that. 

*^  Donald  M^Innes,  crofter,  Duisdale,  aged  75,  said — I  remember  very 
well  the  remoyal  of  the  people  from  Borreraig  twenty-six  years  ago, 
and  the  hardships  they  had  to  endure  when  put  out  of  their  houses. 
It  was  in  time  of  snow  when  they  were  evicted.  One  man  perished. 
I  was  in  a  comfortable  position  before  people  were  put  in  among  us 
by  the  clearing  of  other  townships. 

**  The  man  who  perished  belonged  to  Snishnish.  He  was  found  dead 
at  his  own  door,  after  he  had  been  evicted.  His  name  was  Alexr. 
Matheson.  There  was  great  hardship  connected  with  that  eviction. 
The  fires  were  extinguished,  the  houses  knocked  down,  and  the  people 
forced  out  much  against  their  will.    The  officers  compelled  them." 

With  regard  to  the  evidence  given  at  South  Uist,  one  of  the  Boyal 
Commissioners  remarked — **  There  is  a  serious  charge  in  the  paper 
which  requires  a  little  explanation.  It  is  said  in  reference  to  the 
emigration  of  the  people  that  *  they  were  compelled  to  emigrate  to 
America ;  some  of  them  had  been  tied  before  our  eyes ;  others  hid 
themselves  in  caves  and  crevices  for  fear  of  being  caught  by  authorized 
officers.*    Did  you  see  any  of  these  operations  ? 

"  A, — ^Tes ;  he  heard  of  them,  and  saw  them.  He  saw  a  policeman 
chasing  a  lad  named  Donald  Smith  down  the  road  towards  Askemish 
with  the  view  of  catching  him,  in  order  to  send  him  aboard  the  emigrant 
ship  lying  at  Lochboisdale,  and  he  saw  a  man  who  lay  down  on  his  face 
and  knees  on  a  little  island  to  hide  himself  from  the  policeman,  who  had 
dogs  searching  for  him  in  order  to  get  him  aboard  the  emigrant  ship. 
The  man's  name  was  Lauchlan  McDonald.  The  dogs  did  not  find  this 
unfortunate  youth,  but  he  was  discovered  all  the  same  in  a  trench, 
and  was  taken  off. 

"  Q. — Do  you  really  say  that  those  people  were  caught  and  sent  to 
America,  just  like  an  animal  going  to  market  P 

**  A. — Just  the  same  way.  There  was  another  case  of  a  man  named 
Angus  Johnston.  He  had  a  dead  child  in  the  house,  and  his  wife  gave 
birth  to  three  children,  all  of  whom  died.  Notwithstanding  this,  he 
was  seized,  and  tied  on  the  pier  at  Lochboisdale,  and  kicked  on  board. 
The  old  priest  interfered,  and  said,  '  What  are  you  doing  to  this  man  ? 
let  him  alone ;  it  is  against  the  law.*    There  were  many  hardships  and 


FORCIBLE  EVICTIONS.  317 

craelties  endured  in  consequence  of  theRe  evictions.  He  himself  had 
charge  of  a  squad  of  men  on  the  road  when  Lachlan  Chisholm  and  Mal- 
colm M'Lean  asked  him  to  go  to  Loch  Eynort  to  bring  people  out  of 
their  homes  to  emigrate.   He  refused,  and  constables  were  sent  for  them. 

"  The  young  man  Smith  he  mentioned  did  not  belong  to  any  family 
going  away.  He  was  twenty  years  of  age,  and  his  father  and  mother 
were  dead  at  the  time. 

**  The  wife  of  the  man  who  was  tied  and  put  aboard  afterwards  went 
to  the  vessel.  The  four  dead  children  would  be  buried  by  that  time. 
T?i€Be  things  happened  in  the  year  1850  or  1851.  The  people  were  hid- 
ing themselves  in  caves  and  dens  for  fear  of  being  sent  away  from  the 
island. 

*'  He  remembered  seeing  the  i)eople  forced  into  the  emigrant  ships  at 
Lochboisdale  by  policemen  and  others.  He  saw  a  man  named  William 
Macpherson  forced  by  four  men  to  the  water-side  and  put  into  the 
ship.  Every  one  of  the  family  was  sent  away,  including  the  blind 
father.  There  was  another  case  of  a  man  named  Donald  M*Lellan, 
who,  with  his  wife  and  family,  was  taken  from  his  house  and  put  into 
a  cart  imtil  they  could  be  sent  off.  There  were  many  such  cases  at 
the  time.  It  was  about  forty  years  ago.  Seventeen  hundred  persons 
were,  he  believed,  sent  off,  all  of  them  belonging  to  the  Gordon  estate. 
So  many  people  were  wanting  the  land  which  these  persons  occupied 
that  they  were  soon  filled  up.** 

One  of  the  witnesses  at  Tarbert  in  Harris  gave  a  number  of  reminis- 
cences of  the  estate  in  the  olden  time,  and  mentioned  that  when  one 
of  the  Macleods  came  home  with  his  young  wife  the  people  were 
delighted  to  see  him ;  twenty  young  women  went  out  and  danced  a 
reel  before  him.  "  Before  the  year  was  out,  these  twenty  women  were 
weeping  and  wailing  for  their  houses,  which  were  unroofed,  and  their 
fires  quenched.  One  hundred  and  fifty  families  were  so  treated  at 
that  time  by  order  of  the  estate,  and  were  scattered  abroad." 

Another  instance  I  cannot  refrain  from  quoting  comes  to  us  from 
near  Dunvegan  in  Skye. 

*'  John  Macfie,  74,  crofter,  Harlosh,  said — I  have  been  forty-six  years 
in  my  present  croft.  The  people  began  to  fall  into  arrears  when  the 
kelp  industry  ceased.  In  1840  there  were  seventeen  families  removed 
from  Feorlick  by  Mr.  Gibbon,  the  tacksman,  who  took  the  land  and 
the  people  on.  They  were  placed,  some  by  the  sea  and  some  on  peat 
land  which  had  never  been  cultivated.  Some  of  them  did  not  get  a 
place  on  earth  on  which  to  put  a  foot.    I  myself  saw  them  living 


318  IK  THE  HEBRIDES. 

under  a  sail,  spread  on  three  poles,  below  high-water  mark.  One  of 
the  crofters — Donald  Campbell — was  warned  by  the  ground  officer 
for  giving  refuge  to  a  poor  man  who  had  no  house.  The  ground 
officer  came  and  pulled  down  the  house,  and  took  a  pail  of  water  and 
threw  it  on  the  fire.  By  the  noise  made  by  the  extinguishing  of  the 
fire,  and  the  denseness  of  the  steam,  the  wife  went  out  of  her  senses. 
We  were  then  told  that  if  we  took  her  out  to  sea,  and  pulled  her  after  a 
loatf  she  would  get  better.  We  took  her  out  to  sea,  hut  she  would  not  sink 
deeper  than  her  breast.  I  NEYEB  SAW  OXE  WHO  WAS  80  mad.  When 
Campbell  was  put  out  of  his  house,  not  a  tenant  was  allowed  to  give 
him  shelter.  He  had  nine  of  a  family,  and  they  had  to  remain  on  the 
hillside  on  a  wet  night.  The  tacksman  took  our  hill  pasture  which 
we  had  for  fifty  or  sixty  years,  and  settled  crofters  upon  it.  We  are 
still  paying  for  that  hill  pasture.  We  have  no  road,  and  should  any 
of  our  people  die  in  the  winter,  they  have  to  be  buried  in  the  sea  or 
in  the  peat-moss." 

Anyone  interested  in  this  subject  will  find  minute  details  in  a  pamphlet 
on '  The  Highland  Clearances,'  by  Alex.  Mackenzie,  Inverness,  in  which 
are  recorded  well-nigh  incredible  statistics  of  events  in  the  Isles  and 
Highlands  within  the  last  hundred  years.  It  tolls  of  the  wholesale 
clearances  of  wide  districts  in  Sutherland  and  in  parts  of  Boss  and 
Inverness ;  of  how  5390  people  were  forcibly  driven  out  from  the  glens 
of  Knoydart  and  Strathglass.  It  gives  details  of  the  inconceivable 
cruelties  incident  on  the  Glengarry  evictions  in  1853,  when  the  whole 
population  were  suddenly  swept  from  the  land,  which  was  then  oon- 
verted  into  great  sheep-runs. 

It  tells  how  in  1849  about  seven  hundred  people  were  evicted  from 
Solas,  in  North  Uist ;  and  how  in  1852  the  districts  of  Boreraig  and 
Suisinish,  in  the  Isle  of  Skye,  were  likewise  cleared,  no  mercy  being 
shown  to  age  or  sex.  Every  home  was  barbarously  destroyed  ;lthe  poor 
possessions  of  the  innocent  inmates  were  thrown  out  and  broken,  the 
half -woven  webs  cut  from  the  loom ;  helpless  women  on  the  eve  of  their 
confinement,  wailing  children,  tottering  grand-parents,  all  were  alike 
thrust  out  from  their  loved  homes,  without  food,  fire,  or  shelter,  or 
the  means  of  procuring  any.  Many  died  of  consumption,  induced  by 
sleeping  shelterless  for  many  nights  on  the  cold  ground  (damp  peat- 
moss). 

A  considerable  number  were  evicted  at  Christmas,  their  fires  ex- 
tinguished, their  houses  palled  down,  and  they  themselves  forced  out 


EMIGRATION  IN  TIMES  PAST  AND  PRESENT.  319 

into  the  driftmg  snow,  to  find  what  shelter  they  could  among  the 
rocks.  Happy  those  who  could  find  a  comer  in  some  dilapidated  bam, 
or  even  rig  up  a  blanket-tent  in  some  rained  church.  Even  from  such 
shelters  as  these  they  were  again  and  again  ejected,  without  any 
substitute  being  provided  or  any  provision  whatever  for  their  support. 

When  some  particulars  of  this  reckless  cruelty  became  known,  and 
called  forth  an  expression  of  public  opinion,  the  &ctor  actually  pub- 
lished a  circular,  declaring  that  these  evictions  were  **  prompted  by 
motives  of  piety  and  benevolence,  because  the  people  were  too  far  from 
Church!!'' 

In  1849  and  1851  upwards  of  two  thousand  persons  were  forcibly 
shipped  from  South  Uist  and  Barra,  and  conveyed  to  Quebec.  Some 
were  induced  to  embark  voluntarily  under  promise  that  they  were  to 
be  conveyed  free  of  all  expense  to  Upper  Canada,  where,  on  arrival, 
the  Government  agents  would  give  them  work  and  grant  them  land. 
These  conditions  were  not  fulfilled.  They  were  turned  adrift  at  Quebec, 
and  thence  compelled  to  beg  their  way  to  Upper  Canada,  and  the 
Canadian  papers  teemed  with  accounts  of  the  miseries  endured  by 
these  unfortunate  Highland  emigrants,  whose  misery  was  aggravated 
by  understanding  only  Gaelic,  so  that  they  were  practically  strangers 
in  a  foreign  land.  These,  and  thousands  of  emigrants  from  Lewis, 
arrived  as  paupers,  dependent  for  daily  bread  on  the  charity  of  the 
Canadian  settlers. 

After  these  sad  stories  of  how  the  bitter  pill  of  compulsory  emigra- 
tion was  sweetened  thirty  years  ago,  I  must  add  a  few  words  to  show 
how  differently  such  matters  are  now  conducted  in  South  Uist. 

I  am  told  that  each  poor  fSamily  which  has  resolved  to  emigrate 
from  the  estates  of  the  large-hearted  proprietrix,  havemot  only  received 
aU  manner  of  compensations,  but  have  also  been  presented  with  £100 
to  start  them  fair  in  their  new  colony.  A  correspondent  of  '  The 
Scotsman '  (May  1883)  thus  announces  the  arrival  in  the  Great  North 
West  of  the  first  detachment. 

"  The  first  batch  of  emigrants  sent  out  firom  Scotland  under  the 
auspices  of  Lady  (Gordon  Cathcart,  numbering  forty-five  souls,  and  of 
whom  eighteen,  being  adults,  are  entitled  to  free  homesteads,  arrived 
in  Manitoba  last  week,  and  proceeded  to  Brandon,  where  the  majority 
of  them  remain  under  the  protection  of  the  Government  immigration 
agent  at  that  point,  whilBt  two  of  the  party  are  out  prospecting  with 
a  land  guide  for  a  suitable  section  of  country  in  which  to  locate  their 


320  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

colony.  The  oonntry  in  the  vicinity  of  Moosomin  has  been  offered  to 
them,  and  being  well  wooded,  and  possessing  abundance  of  water,  is 
probably  about  as  good  a  selection  as  they  can  make. 

**  The  system  Lady  Cathcart  has  adopted  to  assist  these  small  tenant- 
farmers  of  hers  is  not  in  the  ordinary  way  of  paying  their  passage 
out,  and  then  leaving  them  to  the  care  of  strangers ;  but  she  places  a 
sum  of  money  to  their  credit  in  a  Winnipeg  bank,  under  the  control 
of  an  accredited  Government  agent,  to  be  distributed  amongst  them 
in  the  purchase  of  agricultural  implements." , 


THE  OUTERMOST  ISLK  321 


CHAPTER  X. 


ST.   KILDA. 


The  Seft-fowl's  Kingdom— Predons  Fulmar— Population— Means  of  Living— 
Accounts  by  Martin,  Kenneth  Macaulay,  and  Dr.  Macculloch — Infant 
MortaUty- Mysterious  Colds— '<  No  English  "-A  Life  of  Exile-High 
Morality— Primitive  Customs— Traces  of  Heathen  Worship— Ravages  of 
Small-pox- Lack  of  Boats. 

Sixty  miles  beyond  Harris,  forty-five  from  North  Uist,  and  a 
hundred  and  forty  from  the  mainland,  lies  St.  Kilda,  formerly 
called  Hirt  or  Hirtha  (so  late  as  xd.  1704,  Buchanan  was  sent  as  a 
missionary  to  the  inhabitants  of  Hirta),  a  mighty  rock  mass,  rising 
precipitously  from  the  wild  waves — a  lonely  isle  indeed.  In  point 
of  fact  it  is  one  of  a  small  group,  of  which,  however,  only  St.  Eilda 
possesses  human  inhabitants.  The  two  neighbouring  islets  of  Soay 
and  Boreray  provide  rich  pasture  for  sheep,  but  the  predominance 
of  rugged  rock  makes  shepherding  here  a  difficult  matter.  A 
hundred  years  ago  five  hundred  sheep  were  pastured  on  Soay — ^now 
the  island  supports  two  hundred.  Besides  these,  there  are  five 
bare  rocks  jutting  up  from  the  sea,  where,  all  through  the  long 
months  of  spring  and  summer  (t.  e.  from  the  beginning  of  March 
till  the  beginning  of  November),  myriads  of  wild  sea-birds  congre- 
gate; so  that  the  dark  rocks  of  Lij,  Stack-in- Armin,  and  Stack- 
Birael  seem  transformed  to  snowy  mountains  by  reason  of  the 
multitude  of  solan  geese  and  other  birds  of  white  plumage. 

Y 


322  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

Around  St.  Kilda  itself,  during  these  months,  a  never-ceasing 
snow-shower  seems  to  fall — a  shower  whose  quivering  snow-flakes 
are  each  beautiful  liviag  creatures ;  birds  of  dazzling  whiteness, 
that  float  in  tremulous  clouds  around  their  chosen  home — the  ijsle 
of  which  Scott  said  that 


"  Here  the  lone  sea-bird  makes  its  wildest  cry. 


t> 


The  little  island  is  about  three  miles  long  and  two  broad ;  and, 
except  at  two  points  (where  there  *is  a  landing-place,  whence  you 
can  scramble  up  the  rocks  by  a  steep  path),  its  sea-face  is  a  series 
of  precipitous  cliffs,  of  dark  syenitic  trap  and  greenstone,  rising 
perpendicularly  to  a  very  great  height,  in  some  places  nearly  1400 
feet.  They  are  said  to  be  the  highest  crags  in  Britain.  These  in 
the  distance  seem  positively  white  by  reason  of  the  myriads  of  gulls, 
gannets,  guillemots,  and  every  species  of  sea-bird,  whose  nests  are 
closely  packed  on  every  ledge  of  rock. 

Equally  numerous  is  the  bird  population  on  the  crags  of  Boreiay, 
which  are  almost  as  precipitous  as  those  of  St.  Kilda  itself. 

The  solan  goose,  the  great  northern  diver,  the  fulmar  or  stormy 
petrel,  which  the  sailors  declare  is  named  after  St.  Peter,  in  memory 
of  his  walking  on  the  sea,  great  solemn  black  cormorants  standing 
sentinel,  thousands  of  puffins;  in  short,  every  sea-bird  you  ever 
heard  of,  are  here,  living  busy  domestic  lives  ;  talking  hard  about 
the  prospects  of  the  year,  and  of  the  millions  of  blue  and  green 
eggs  which  they  have  laid  among  grass  or  rushes,  on  bare  rock,  or 
among  the  large  stones.  Each  tribe  has  its  own  encampment, 
though  wayward  individuals  will  sometimes  sit  apart  in  some 
solitary  niche. 

The  puffins,  especially,  live  in  colonies ;  burrowing  in  the  earth 
with  their  strong  beak,  or  "  neb,"  as  the  country  folk  say.  Hence 
their  name  of  coulter-neb,  from  the  coulter  of  a  plough.  The  idler 
puffins  proflt  by  the  labour  of  others,  and  make  their  nests  in  old 
rabbit-holes. 

Then  there  are  the  foolish  guillemots,  which  earn  their  name  by 
sitting  still  on  the  rocks,  and  allowing  themselves  to  be  caught  by 
the  hand.     They  are  said  to  carry  their  young  on  their  backs,  from 


*JPB~»i^^fc« 


SEA-FOWL.  323 

their  high  nests  on  the  rocks,  down  to  the  water,  when  it  is  time  to 
give  them  swimming  lessons.  Each  bird  lays  one  large  egg,  which 
is  considered  excellent  food.  That  of  the  solan  goose  is  also  a 
delicacy,  being  translucent  and  oval,  much  resembling  that  of  the 
plover.  She  also  only  lays  one  egg,  and  sits  with  her  foot  on  it — 
the  male  bird  very  properly  taking  his  turn.  The  great  auk 
altogether  declines  to  sit  on  her  eggs,  but  nestles  close  beside  them, 
and  the  warmth  of  her  body,  or  of  her  maternal  love,  hatchea  them 
in  due  time. 

There  are  eider  ducks  (too,  whose  precious  down  the  islanders 
carefully  collect,  going  the  round  of  the  nests  several  times  in  a 
season,  and  thence  stealing  all  the  soft  fine  lining  which  the  mother 
duck  has  plucked  from  her  own  breast,  and  with  which,  moreover, 
she  covers  her  four  eggs,  that  her  tender  nestlings  may  find  a  warmer 
welcome  when  they  come  out  of  their  shell.  So  patient  and  long- 
suffering  is  this  good  mother,  that  when  ruthless  hands  have 
despoiled  her  nest  and  taken  one  or  two  of  her  eggs,  she  will  lay 
more  eggs  and  pull  more  down,  repeating  the  process  till  she  has  no 
down  left,  and  has  to  appeal  to  the  drake,  who  then  gives  aU  he 
can  spare.  It  is  said  that  one  duck  will  thus  yield  about  half  a 
pound  in  a  season,  an  immense  quantity  considering  its  amazing 
lightness.  Bedsides  these  eggs,  vast  numbers  are  taken  of  other 
sorts,  and  of  the  young  birds,  which  the  people  use  as  food.  It  is 
reckoned  that  upwards  of  20,000  gannets  are  annually  destroyed  in 
the  Hebrides,  yet  their  number  shows  no  perceptible  decrease. 

The  life  of  a  rock  fowler  is  perilous  indeed ;  sometimes  he  must 
make  his  difficult  way  along  scarcely  perceptible  ledges,  where  one 
false  step  would  involve  certain  death.  But  the  most  inaccessible 
cliffs  are  always  the  most  thickly  crowded  with  nests,  so  these  are 
the  goals  to  be  won ;  the  lower  cliffs,  to  which  his  companions  can 
let  him  down  by  strong  ropes,  are  comparatively  safe  quarters, 
though  dangerous  enough.  As  to  the  ropes,  they  are  precious 
property ;  a  good  rope  is  a  maiden's  dowry,  and  is  the  most  precious 
legacy  which  friend  can  bequeath  to  friend.  The  rope  must  be 
about  thirty  fathoms  long,  and  the  best  are  those  made  of  strong 
raw  cowhide,  in  threefold  twist ;  this  is  wrapped  round  with  sheep- 

Y  2 


324  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

skin  to  preyenc  the  sharp  rocks  from  cutting  it.  Such  a  rope  is  a 
treasure  indeed,  and  with  fair  usage  it  ought  to  last  at  least  two 
generations.  The  man  who  possesses  such  a  one  may  reap  his 
never-failing  harvest  on  the  most  awful  crags.  Descending  hj  his 
rope,  he  drops  his  snares  over  the  unwary  hirds,  and  so  captures 
them,  while  his  poorer  neighbour  must  be  content  with  smaller 
gains,  on  less  dizzy  ledges.  The  people  consider  that  the  sea-birds 
yield  most  oil  in  the  beginning  of  summer.  They  catch  the  young 
ones  with  their  hands,  before  they  can  fly,  and  the  older  ones  with 
a  rod  and  snare. 

There  is  one  very  simple  method  of  catching  old  birds,  known 
as  the  gull  fishery.  An  old  woman  will  set  long  strings  with 
nooses,  and  then  sits  watching  them,  ready  to  draw  them  in  at  the 
right  moment.  She  carries  a  small  pouch,  ready  to  catch  the  oil 
which  the  bird  throws  up  in  the  anguish  of  being  captured.  The 
oil  of  the  fulmar  is  coarse  and  yellow,  having  a  strong  rancid  smell ; 
the  people  say  it  cures  rheumatism,  and  they  bum  it  in  their  lamps 
in  the  long  winter  nights.  The  bird  is  so  full  of  oil  that  some 
slovenly  householders  do  not  even  extract  it,  but  passing  a  wick 
through  the  body  of  the  dead  bird,  and  drawing  it  out  by  the  beak, 
actually  light  the  wick  thus  oiled,  and  it  goes  on  burning  for  a 
considerable  time.     Thus  they  have  a  ready-made  bird-lamp. 

They  say  the  fulmar  gives  them  oil  for  burning,  down  for  their 
beds,  wholesome  meat,  and  healing  ointment  Therefore  they 
abstain  from  ever  taking  its  egg — it  lays  only  one,  and  deserts  its 
nest  if  touched  by  human  hand. 

The  people  also  make  a  sort  of  pudding  or  sauce  of  the  very  thick 
layer  of  fat  which  covers  the  solan  goose,  and  give  it  to  their  cattle 
as  a  sort  of  soothing  posset  if  they  seem  to  have  caught  cold.  The 
Rev.  Kenneth  Macaulay,  [who  was  appointed  missionary  to  St 
Kilda  in  a.d.  1764,  speaks  of  this  oily  preparation  as  the  island 
substitute  for  milk  in  the  last  century,  at  which  time,  he  says  that 
the  despotic  steward  of  the  isle  claimed  all  the  milk  of  the  people's 
cows  (pretty  little  red  cows),  as  also  every  second  he-lamb,  every 
seventh  she-lamb,  and  every  seventh  fleece ;  and  also  the  sole  right 
to  purchase  the  increase  of  the  flocks.    The  people  had  at  that  time 


ST.  KILDA.  325 

about  a  thousand  sheep  pasturing  on  St  Kilda,  and  four  hundred 
on  Boreray. 

He  describes  the  care  with  which  the  small  tract  of  arable  land 
was  cultivated,  and  how  its  produce  not  only  sufficed  for  the  wants 
of  the  people,  but  enabled  them  annually  to  export  to  Harris  fifty 
bolls  of  very  good  barley.  Potatoes  had  very  recently  been 
introduced,  as  a  novelty. 

Now,  the  island  produces  only  a  small  portion  of  the  meal 
necessary  for  a  smaller  population,  and  the  pastures  support  fewer 
sheep. 

The  population  of  St.  Kilda,  in  1881,  numbered  nineteen  families, 
t.  e,  seventy-seven  persons :  thirty-three  male,  forty-four  female.   They 
live  in  a  small  green  valley  which  runs  down  to  the  shore,  where 
there  are  about  thirty  acres  of  land  under  cultivation — the  only 
arable  ground  on  the  island.     The  people  grow  potatoes  and  oats, 
but  get  poor  return — even  in  a  good  year  they  can  barely  treble  the 
seed  sown,  and  they  say  that  the  average  return  steadily  decreases. 
About  fifty  black  cattle  and  four  hundred  sheep  find  a  living 
among  the  rocky  hills,  but,  sad  to  say,  the  pastures  are  also 
deteriorating,  as  there  is  no  peat  moss  on  the  isle,  so  the  people 
are  compelled  to  dig  up  turf,  to  supply  themselves  with  necessary 
fuel,  and  this  work  of  destruction  goes  on  faster  than  nature's 
powers  of  fresh  growth.     Some  pasture,  however,  is  obtained  on 
some  little  islets  near,  and  so  the  people  obtain  sufficient  wool,  not 
only  to  clothe  themselves  in  good  homespun,  but  they  also  with 
their  rude  hand-looms  manufacture  strong  coarse  cloth  for  export. 
They  dye  their  own  wool,  make  their  own  boots  of  home-cured 
hides,  knit  stockings,  and  prepare  much  salt-fish  for  the  market,  in 
addition  to  their  stores  of  feathers  and  sea-bird  oiL 

Curiously  enough,  there  are  no  hem  on  the  island.  Sea-fowl 
feed  themselves,  and  provide  a  never-failing  supply  of  eggs. 

The  ordinary  food  still  consists  chiefly  of  the  flesh  of  sea-birds. 
Only  think  how  wearisome  an  unvarjring  diet  of  salt-fish  alternating 
with  salt  sea-bird,  must  be  for  months  together — all  through  the 
long  dreary  winter!  how,  even  from  the  commissariat  point  of 
view,  the  people  must  bemoan  the  departure  of  the  myriads  of 


326  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

blithe,  white-winged  birds,  which  betokens  not  only  the  approach 
of  short  dark  days,  but  a  long  fast  from  fresh  meat !  Think  how 
they  must  hail  the  return  of  the  birds  in  spring,  with  their  inex- 
haustible supply  of  fresh  eggs !  They  do  occasionally  indulge  in  a 
dish  of  brazy  mutton,  but  cannot  afford  to  kill  healthy  sheep,  so 
that  roast  puffin  or  salt  fulmar  stewed  in  oatmeal,  are  still  the 
standard  dishes  of  St.  Kilda. 

Mr.  Macaulay  says  that  in  his  day  the  isle  Lij  was  set  apart  as  a 
bird  sanctuary,  from  which  no  eggs  were  ever  taken.  But  from  all 
the  other  rocks  vast  stores  of  eggs  were  collected  and  carefully 
stored,  without  any  sort  of  preserving  process,  and  these  the  people 
ate  with  perfect  composure  when  in  the  most  advanced  stage  of 
rottenness ! ! 

A  hundred  years  earlier  Mr.  Martin  had  observed  that  the  people 
of  St.  Kilda  divided  the  fishing  and  fowling  rocks  as  exactly  as 
they  did  their  com  and  grass  land,  and  no  poaching  would  have 
been  tolerated.  Every  three  years  the  rocks  were  divided  anew  by 
lot;  a  very  important  measure,  especially  as  regards  the  fishing 
rocks,  inasmuch  as  there  are  only  two  on  the  isle  from  which  it  is 
possible  to  angle,  and  those  are  difficult  of  access.  The  produce  of 
these  was  something  enormous.  He  says  that  in  one  day  he  saw 
the  people  bring  home  2000  sea-fowl  and  twenty-nine  large  baskets- 
full  of  eggs ;  some  containing  400  large  eggs,  others  about  800  of 
lesser  sorts. 

The  only  miracle  is  how  the  vast  amount  of  bird-life  is  kept  up 
without  diminution,  but  year  by  year  fresh ' myriads  are  there; 
countless  millions  floating  about  in  feathery  crowds  and  darkening 
the  air  with  most  substantial  cloud-shadows,  or  else  packed  together 
in  serried  rows  along  every  niche  and  ledge  of  the  cliffs,  each  bird 
knowing  its  own  nest  and  egg  by  some  marvellous  instinct,  and 
rearing  its  curious  brood  of  soft,  downy  nestlings  in  that  strangely 
public  family  life.  And  -so  the  race  of  beautiful,  snowy,  white- 
winged  spirits,  with  the  wild  eyes  and  the  eerie  cry,  still  holds  its 
ground,  rejoicing  in  the  calm  sunshine,  or  battling  with  wind  and 
wave,  and  showing  no  decrease  in  its  numbers  in  spite  of  all  its 
human  foes. 


TRADE  IN  FEATHERS.  327 

Dr.  Maccnllocli's  account  of  the  island  reads  like  that  of  a 
feather-bed  gone  mad.  He  says:  "The  air  is  full  of  feathered 
animals,  the  sea  is  covered  with  them,  the  houses  are  ornamented 
by  them,  and  the  inhabitants  look  as  if  they  had  been  all  tarred 
and  feathered,  for  their  hair  is  full  of  feathers  and  their  clothes  are 
covered  with  feathers.  The  women  look  like  feathered  Mercuries, 
for  their  shoes  are  made  of  gannet's  skin.  Everything  smells  of 
feathers."  When  the  feathers  are  ready  for  exportation  they  are 
stowed  away  in  low  stone  cells  and  covered  with  turf,  to  await  the 
coming  of  the  next  boat,  laden  with  such  simple  goods  as  may  suit 
the  needs  of  these  Children  of  the  Waves  and  of  the  Mist 

For  in  their  own  primitive  fashion  they  are  self-supporting,  and 
care  little  for  the  changes  and  chances  of  the  outer  world,  with 
which  they  have  no  regular  connection. 

Twice  a  year,  in  June  and  September,  a  boat,  sent  by  Macleod 
of  Macleod,  goes  over  from  Harris  laden  with  useful  merchandise, 
to  exchange  for  the  surplus  produce  of  the  isle ;  with  which  pro- 
duce the  rent  is  also  paid  in  kind-— oil,  feathers,  cloth,  and  cattle. 
The  feathers  are  taken  at  a  valuation  of  78.  per  stone  for  black 
puffin  feathers,  58.  per  stone  for  grey  feathers,  fulmar  oil  at  Is.  a  pint, 
cloth  at  3«.  the  Scotch  ell,  and  cattle  according  to  individual  value. 

Few  and  simple  are  the  desires  of  the  people.  Yet  they  do 
mourn  some  of  their  deficiences^-chiefly  having  no  doctor,  and 
being  often  left  without  the  simplest  medicines — ^no  regular  post, 
and,  above  all,  no  harbour  where  any  boat  can  find  refuge  in  a 
storm.  The  isle  is  so  difficult  of  access,  that  it  is  not  a  pleasant 
landing  even  in  fine  weather,  being  on  the  sloping  side  of  a  solid 
rock  which  descends  right  down  into  the  sea,  and  is  all  slippery 
with  the  green  weed  known  in  Scotland  as  slawk,  and  which  is 
said  to  be  identical  with  the  laver,  dear  to  English  epicures.  It  has 
also  a  small  sandy  beach,  but  this  is  only  accessible  at  low  tide,  and 
then  not  without  danger,  and  aid  from  the  inhabitants. 

Most  yachts  rather  avoid  approaching  these  dangerous  and  in- 
hospitable rocks,  and  steamers  call  by  chance  on  an  average  about 
four  times  in  the  course  of  the  summer,  bringing  welcome  news- 
papers  and  possibly  letters;  so  that    mails  may  perhaps   come 


328  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

about  six  times  in  a  year.     Sometimes,  however,  eight  or  nine 
months  elapse  witJioiU  any  communication  with  tlie  outer  world, 

Ab  I  pen  these  lines,  news  comes  from  Danvegan,  in  Skye,  that 
five  men  from  St.  Kilda  had  just  arrived  there  in  a  small  open 
fishing-boat,  to  say  that  the  store  of  meal  is  finished,  and  that  (like 
all  the  inhabitants  of  the  other  isles)  they  have  neither  seed-oats 
nor  potatoes  for  the  spring*  sowing.  Dire  necessity  could  alone 
inspire  men  with  the  courage  to  start  on  a  voyage  of  upwards  of  a 
hundred  miles,  across  the  stormy  .seas,  in  April  gales,  and  in  a  poor 
little  open  boat ! 

Just  imagine  the  force  with  which  the  "great  waves  must  dash 
against  these  desolate  cliffs,  in  the  wild  wintry  storms,  chafing  and 
frothing  over  all  the  low  breastwork  of  sunken  rocks,  till,  far  as  the 
eye  can  reach,  nothing  is  visible  but  range  beyond  range  of  raging 
breakers,  the  whole  ocean  boiling  and  seething  like  yeast,  while 
blinding  spray  drifts  right  over  the  little  island,  and  even  the  wild 
sea-birds  dare  not  face  the  storm,  but  take  refuge  in  the  caves  and 
hollows  of  the  rock,  where  they  sit  half  stupefied,  and  in  danger  of 
starvation.  Terrible  thunder-storms  add  awe  to  these  wild  winter 
months,  and  darken  the  brief  hours  of  day. 

Those  long  summer  months,  which  know  no  real  darkness,  are 
succeeded  by  wintry  nights  of  sixteen  hours'  duration,  and  long- 
continued  periods  of  storm,  during  which  the  cattle  and  the  sheep 
must  seek  for  themselves  such  corners  of  shelter  as  exist,  and  the 
people  must  busy  themselves  with  their  weaving  and  knitting,  and 
in  cleaning  and  preparing  their  feathers  for  market.  As  to  the 
knitting,  that  is  a  never-failing  occupation  for  every  moment  when 
there  is  no  other  work  on  hand. 

Thus,  year  after  year,  the  simple  round  of  life  moves  on.  To 
the  casual  visitor,  a  life  full  of  strange,  picturesque  incident,  but 
one  suggestive  of  dull  monotony  to  any  but  a  bom  islander,  one 
who  can  calmly  contemplate  the  prospect  of  watching  the  sun  rise 
from  the  ocean,  and  sink  into  it  again  day  after  day,  always  from 
the  same  spot,  throughout  his  fourscore  years.  Yet  such  men  do 
exist,  and  nowhere  is  the  love  of  country  and  of  home  more  deeply 
rooted  than  among  the  lonely  islanders  of  St.  Kilda. 


A  WRETCHED  VILLAGE.  329 

The  isle  is  an  ancient  possession  of  the  house  of  Dunvegan.  Mr. 
Macaulay  spoke  of  Norman  Macleod  of  Macleod  as  proprietor  in 
his  time,  having  inherited  from  his  ancestors,  who  had  then  been 
in  possession  for  at  least  two  hundred  years.  How  it  came  to  pass 
from  the  direct  line  I  know  not,  but  I  am  told  that  it  was  not 
repurchased  till  the  reign  of  the  present  chief — a  unique  but  very 
unremunerative  property. 

At  the  time  when  the  present  Macleod  of  Macleod  took  it  in 
hand,  he  found  all  its  inhabitants  living  huddled  together  in  a  most 
wretched  vUlage — a  cluster  of  flat-roofed  huts,  half-buried  by  the 
accumulation  of  filth,  both  inside  and  out,  consisting  chiefly  of  the 
very  unfragrant  refuse  of  ancient  sea-fowl  carcases !  The  village 
resembled  a  Hottentot  kraal,  though  lacking  its  regularity.  These 
miserable  huts  were  mere  ^mounds,  with  waUs  Ave  or  six  feet  in 
thickness,  built  of  loose  stones  and  turf,  thatched  with  oat  straw, 
and  flUed  with  a  perpetual  cloud  of  dense  smoke.  They  had 
neither  chimney  nor  w^dow.  nor  furniture  of  any  sort,  bui  were 
divided  by  a  partition  of  loose  stones,  the  cattle  and  poultry  occupy- 
ing the  outer  half,  which  acted  as  the  general  manure  pit,  where  all 
manner  of  fllth  was  allowed  to  accumulate,  forming  a  precious  store, 
which  once  a  year  was  removed,  and  spread  over  the  tiny,  hand- 
ploughed  fields.  The  houses  rarely  exceeded  four  feet  in  apparent 
height,  being  sunk  in  the  earth,  so  as  to  be  less  exposed  to  the  wild 
raging  winds  which  sweep  the  island. 

Determined  to  improve  the  condition  of  his  islanders,  Macleod 
provided  each  family  with  a  substantial  two-roomed  stone  house, 
roofed  with  galvanized  iron,  as  being  more  durable  than  thatch, 
and  more  able  to  resist  the  wild  winds.  These  houses  form  a  most 
respectable  street,  but  within-doors,  the  people  naturally  adhere  to 
their  long-cheriahed  notions  of  the  comfort  of  dirt  and  untidiness. 
Milk-dishes,  ropes,  tarry  nets,  wool,  cooking-pots,  and  fishing-tackle 
are  strewn  haphazard  over  the  broken  earthen  floors;  from  the 
smoke-blackened  rafters  hang  a  winter  store  of  dried  sea-fowl,  fish, 
and  bladders  containing  oil  for  use  in  the  long  winter  nights.  The 
spinning-wheel  and  all  the  requisites  for  carding  and  dressing  wool 
tell  of  the  industrious  and  skilful  hands  that  not  only  provide 


330  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

clothing  for  their  own  families,  but  also  have  a  snrplas  for  sale,  or 
to  help  to  meet  the  rent. 

One  might  naturally  suppose  that  the  grand  sea-breezes,  ^bich 
come  sweeping  right  across  the  broad  Atlantic,  should  insure  to  all 
dwellers  on  St.  Kilda  a  most  unusual  claim  to  robust  health.  But 
strange  to  say,  from  time  immemorial  its  people  have  been  subject 
to  a  most  singular  mortality  among  the  new-born  children,  the 
majority  of  whom  die  within  ten  days  of  their  birth. 

Till  the  present  generation,  it  was  said   that  not  one  in  ten 
survived  the  ninth  day  of  their  unhappy  little  lives,  but  it  was 
supposed  that  this  was  due  to  the  foul  air  the  poor  babies  inhaled 
in  their  filthy  homes,  and  it  was  naturally  supposed  that  when  the 
people  moved  into  the  tidy  street  of  eighteen  good,  two-roomed 
stone  houses,  built  for  them  by  Macleod,  these  ocean-cradled  babies 
would  flourish.     But  strange  to  say,  though  this  infant  mortality 
may  in  some  measure  have  diminished,  it  is  still  a  marked  feature 
of  St.  Kilda.     It  was  hoped  that  the  importation  from  the  main- 
land of  a  good  trained  monthly  nurse  would  exorciso  this  mysterious 
and  malignant  baby-foe,  but  even  this  has  proved  of  little  effect, 
and  a  considerable  number  of  babies  continue  to  perish.     About 
the   sixth   night   after  birth,  the  children  cease   sucking,   being 
apparently  struck  with  a  sort  of  lock-jaw.     Then  they  are  seized 
with  convulsions,  and  die  about  the  eighth  day.    This  extraordinary 
peculiarity  has  been  minutely  described  by  successive  visitors  to 
the  isle,  and  still  no  medical  man  has  been  found  willing  to  face 
an  exile  in  St.  Kilda  in  the  hopes  of  solving  the  mystery.    As  there 
are  only  one  or  two  births  in  the  year,  and  some  babies  do  live,  he 
might  have  to  wait  a  considerable  period. 

Another  very  odd  fact,  which  was^solemnly  vouched  for  by  the 
Eev.  Kenneth  Macaulay  in  1764  (but  which  I  confess  that  I  for 
one  did  not  believe,  till  it  was  gravely  repeated  to  the  Eoyal  Com- 
missioners in  1883  by  the  Rev.  John  Mackay),  is,  that  so  certainly 
as  strangers  visit  the  isle,  a  form  of  influenza  breaks  out  among  the 
islanders.  The  Rev.  Kenneth  says  that  it  has  nothing  whatever  to 
do  with  infection,  for  there  may  not  be  any  sort  of  illness  on  board 
the  vessel  which  brings  the  stranger  (perhaps  a  most  welcome 


MYSTERIOUS  FORBCS  OF  ILLNESS.  331 

friend);  but  nevertheless,  first  one,  then  another,  will  begin  to 
sneeze  and  snuffle,  and  in  the  course  of  a  few  days  every  crea- 
ture on  the  isle  will  be  affected  with  severe  cold,  and  this,  without 
apparent  rhyme  or  reason,  in  the  finest  summer  weather !  There  is 
no  possible  way  of  accounting  for  this. 

Ordinarily  the  people  are  not  subject  to  colds ;  and  they  are 
singularly  exempt  from  that  terrible  heritage  of  most  communities 
in  which  constant  intermarriage  is  the  rule,  instead  of  the  exception 
— ^namely,  consumption.  This  immunity  is  attributed  to  the  very 
large  amount  of  oil  which  they  swallow  with  their  sea-bird  diet, 
especially  the  fulmar  oil.  They  are  also  singularly  free  from  any 
form  of  skin  disease,  a  point  which  is  worthy  of  note,  inasmuch  as 
a  diet  of  sea-fowl  is  generally  supposed  to  produce  this  evil. 

Wild  and  tempestuous  as  are  the  wintry  storms  which  sweep  otrer 
these  lonely  rocks,  the  severity  of  actual  cold  is  certainly  tempered 
by  the  influence  of  the  warm  Gulf  Stream — a  kindly  current  which 
befriends  these  islanders  in  many  ways,  chiefly,  as  we  have  seen,  by 
bringing  gifts  of  timber,  the  most  priceless  of  boons  to  people  who 
have  never  in  their  lives  seen  a  bush  growing.  Here,  indeed,  the 
precipitous  coast  offers  no  tempting  shore  where  old  ocean  may  cast 
its  treasures  of  flotsam  and  jetsam ;  nevertheless  many  floating 
trophies  are  brought  home  by  the  fishers,  and  find  welcome  in  the 
village — a  village  which  is  now  as  tidy  as  can  reasonably  be 
expected  of  a  fisher  town. 

It  has  a  neat  Free  Church,  and  a  long-resident  pastor,  the  Rev. 
John  Mackay,  who  has  stuck  to  his  lonely  post  for  eighteen  years, 
for  a  considerable  part  of  which  time  he  was  the  only  inhabitant  of 
the  isle  who  could  speak  English.  At  last  one  woman  arrived  who 
''had the  English'' ;  she  came  from  Sutherland,  where  she  had  been 
wooed  and  won  by  a  St.  Kilda  man,  who  had  gone  to  the  mainland 
to  seek  his  fortune.  Only  think  what  a  strange  home  for  the  bride 
who  was  not  bom  on  the  isle  !  How  she  must  sometimes  long  to 
escape  from  the  ceaseless  sound  of  the  waves  and  the  screams  of  the 
sea-birds ! 

Yet  in  the  interior  of  the  isle  there  are  pleasant  bits  of  green 
pasture  land,  where  the  fragrant  clover  scents  the  air,  and  lilacj 


332  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

orchis,  and  many  another  sweet  wild-Aower,  make  earth  beautifuL 
And  there  are  many  land-birds  too,  to  bring  unspoken  messages 
from  home — ^larks  and  starlings,  wrens  and  sparrows,  ploYers, 
pigeons,  curlews,  and  herons. 

As  for  the  minister,  his  is  indeed  a  life  of  exile,  with  hardly  ever 
a  chance  of  exchanging  even  a  few  words  (certainly  never  more) 
with  men  from  the  outer  world.  What  a  red-letter  month  it  must 
be  for  him  when  Miss  Macleod  of  Macleod  comes  here  from  Dun- 
vegan  Castle  to  look  after  her  brother's  far-away  tenants,  and  rejoice 
their  hearts  with  her  sympathetic  deeds,  and  words  spoken  in  their 
own  tongue.  Bat  never  has  the  sound  of  these  been  so  precious  as 
when  uttered  by  the  same  kind  lips  to  sick  and  sad-hearted  men 
and  women  from  the  Isles,  many  of  whom  go  to  the  mainland  in 
search  of  work,  and  there  find  themselves  left  stranded,  with  none 
near  who  can  understand  their  feebly-whispered  words  in  the  hour 
of  sickness  or  of  death.  To  minister  to  such  as  these,  this  true 
daughter  of  the  Isles  was  content  for  a  lengthened  period  to  make 
her  home  in  the  dull  and  smoky  atmosphere  of  Greenock,  until 
family  ties  recalled  her  to  Dun  vegan. 

As  regards  statistics  of  morality,  few  districts  stand  so  high  as 
St.  Kilda,  and  these  poor  islanders  may  well  shame  some  of  our 
highly-educated  country  villages  and  towns. 

Strange  as  it  may  sound  to  such  as  know  anything  of  the  state 
of  many  of  these,  it  is  a  fact  that  here  illegitimacy  is  a  thing  almost 
unkno>vn.  There  have  only  been  two  cases  on  the  isle  in  the  last 
eighteen  years !  ^ 

So  great  an  event  as  a  St.  Eilda  wedding  does  not  occur  very 
frequently.  Sometimes  a  whole  year  passes  without  one,  and  two 
within  a  twelvemonth  is  the  highest  number  on  record.  As  the 
people* very  rarely  leave  the  island  in  search  of  work,  it  is  almost 
unheard  of,  that  one  of  them  should  marry  an  outsider.      On 

^  The  statistics  of  births  in  the  principal  towns  of  Scotland  give  an  avenge 
of  one  tenth  as  illegitimate.  In  certain  country  parishes  the  proportion  is 
very  much  higher.  In  the  counties  of  Banff  and  Kirkcudbright  fifteen  per 
cent,  in  Elgin  sixteen,  and  in  Wigtown  seventeen  percent  of  the  children  are 
illegitimate ! 


CLOSE  INTERMARRIAGES.  333 

the  isle  they  are  bom,  and  on  the  isle  they  are  wedded  and 
buried. 

As  a  matter  of  coarse,  this  perpetual  intermarriage  of  near 
kinsfolk — generation  after  generation  of  first  cousins,  marrying  in 
extreme  youth — must  tend  to  the  deterioration  of  the  race,  and  fully 
accounts  for  the  feeble  constitutions  and  tendency  to  divers  forms 
of  disease  which  are,  alas,  so  prevalent  in  our  isles  and  highlands. 

Not  that  this  inherent  delicacy  is  apparent  to  the  casual  observer. 
Except  that  they  are  evidently  afflicted  with  rheumatism,  the 
people  of  St.  Kilda  are  a  comely,  healthy-looking  community, 
representatives  of  six  good  Scotch  names  —  McQueens  and 
McCrinnons,  McDonalds  and  McKinnons,  Ferfirosons  and  Gillies. 

The  men  are  of  middle  stature,  closely  knit,  sturdy-looking 
fellows,  and  the  women  rather  small,  and  some  are  good-looking — 
a  bright,  intelligent  community,  aU  clad  in  homespun  of  their  own 
production ;  many  of  the  women  wearing  gay  cotton  handkerchiefs 
fastened  with  a  home-made  bone  pin,  the  gift  of  sweetheart  or 
brother. 

So  careful  are  they  in  the  upbringing  of  their  little  ones,  that  I 
have  been  told  by  one  well  acquainted  with  these  kindly  islanders, 
that  there  is  scarcely  a  child  of  six  years  old  among  them  who 
cannot  read  at  least  some  part  of  the  Bible  in  the  native  Gaelic. 
The  same  friend  ^  gave  me  a  most  touching  description  of  the  kind< 
ness  shown  him  by  the  people,  when  a  terrible  storm  threatened 
his  ship  with  destruction,  and  it  seemed  as  if  nothing  could  save 
her  from  drifting  right  on  to  the  cruel  rocks,  where  no  assistance 
could  be  rendered,  and  all  hands  must  perish.  In  the  bitter  storm 
the  islanders,  one  and  all,  left  their  firesides  and  repaired  to  the 
lowly  little  church,  where  they  remained  for  hours  in  a  ceaseless 
agony  of  prayer,  till  at  last,  just  when  all  hope  seemed  past,  the 
wind  changed  as  if  by  a  miracle,  and  the  ship  was  saved.  Thus 
their  prayer  was  turned  to  thanksgiving ;  and  before  many  hours 
were  passed,  the  storm  abated,  and  they  were  able  once  more  to 
welcome  the  crew  and  her  captain  to  their  little  rocky  isle. 

The  isolation  of  St.  Kilda  and  the  simplicity  of  its  people  are 

1  The  ]ate  Admiral  Otter. 


334  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

points  of  much  interest  to  the  other  islanders,  who,  by  comparison, 
feel  themselves  to  be  quite  the  Great  World.  So  they  love  to  tell 
how,  after  the  death  of  King  William,  the  good  old  minister  con- 
tinued to  pray  for  him  for  three  years,  at  the  end  of  which  he 
accidentally  heard  of  the  occurrence  I 

The  inhabitants  of  Portree  also  take  great  delight  in  telling  how 
some  old  men  once  came  there  from  St.  Kilda,  and  were  so  much 
alarmed  by  the  size  and  height  of  the  houses  that  they  could  hardly 
venture  to  walk  along  the  street ;  and  of  all  eccentricities  of  civiliz- 
ation, that  which  amused  them  most  was  an  umbrella,  which  they 
borrowed  and  hoisted  in  the  sunshine.  They  were  especially 
amazed  at  the  sight  of  a  few  small  trees,  their  only  notion  of 
vegetation  being  stunted  grass,  oats,  and  barley ;  but  when  they 
beheld  a  coach  and  pair,  their  amazement  at  the  house  on  wheels 
knew  no  bounds,  more  especially  when  they  observed  that  the 
horseshoes  were  fastened  to  the  horses'  hoofs  with  iron  nails — a 
most  startling  novelty. 

What  would  they  say,  could  they  now  return  to  Portree,  to  see 
the  marvellous  telegraphic  needle,  bringing  ceaseless  messages  from 
all  parts  of  the  earth,  more  especially  in  the  tourist  season,  when 
Skye  now  attracts  such  multitudes  of  busy  men  for  a  brief  holiday  t 
Surely  they  would  accuse  the  clerks  of  dabbling  in  the  black  art ! 
Still  more  would  they  marvel  if,  passing  on  to  the  opposite  shore, 
they  could  see  the  swift  iron  horses,  with  fiery  breath,  rushing  to 
and  fro  with  interminable  strings  of  wheeled  houses  crowded  with 
Sassenachs ! 

The  pottery  of  Si  Kilda  is  curious,  being  the  simplest  clay, 
rudely  shaped  by  hand  and  baked  in  the  sun,  having  previously 
been  glazed  with  milk.  Jars,  bowls,  and  all  manner  of  culioary 
dishes  are  thus  made,  and  answer  all  purposes,  a  metal  cooking-pot 
being  still  a  rare  treasure.  Even  in  some  parts  of  the  Isle  of  Lewis 
it  is  said  that  metal  pots  were  almost  unknown  a  dozen  years  ago, 
and  I  have  seen  various  specimens  of  craggans — t.  e,  the  home-made 
crockery  of  Barvas — such  as  no  South  Sea  Islander  would  condescend 
to  acknowledge. 

When  Martin  visited  St.  Kilda  in  A.D.  1692,  he  found  that  the 


A  ORUAGACH  STONE.  335 

ancient  measures  of  omer  and  cubits  still  continued  to  be  used  in 
this  isle.  Macleod's  steward  was  entitled  to  receive  one  omer  of 
barley  from  every  famUy.  He  was  much  struck  by  the  simplicity 
of  .a  young  woman's  marriage  dower,  which  often  consisted  only  of 
one  pound  of  horsehair,  wherewith  to  make  snares  for  her  husband's 
fowling.  There  was  at  that  time  only  one  boat  belonging  to  the 
isle,  and  it  so  happened  that  on  one  occasion  this  boat,  containing 
six  or  eight  men,  was  wrecked  on  a  neighbouring  islet.  These  men 
contrived  to  swim  ashore,  and  collecting  heaps  of  dry  sea- weed,  they 
made  one  fire  to  represent  each  man.  So  the  wives,  understanding 
the  sign,  were  comforted,  and  set  to  work  diligently  to  carry  on  the 
men's  work  till  such  time  (after  some  months  had  elapsed)  as  the 
steward  should  visit  the  isle,  and  could  sail  across  and  rescue  the 
men,  who  had  kept  themselves  alive  with  fish  and  dulse. 

The  Eev.  Kenneth  Macaulay,  writing  in  1764,  found  the  com- 
munity still  possessed  of  only  one  boat,  which  in  winter  was  drawn 
ashore  and  filled  with  earth  and  stones,  to  prevent  its  being  blown 
away.  He  tells  how,  in  October  1759,  ten  men  were  landed  on  the 
pasture  isle  of  Boreray,  which  lies  two  leagues  to  the  north  of  St. 
Kilda.  The  boat  in  returning  to  the  main  isle  was  wrecked,  and 
the  ten  men  had  to  spend  the  winter  on  the  islet,  where  they 
remained  till  the  factor's  boat  visited  St.  Kilda  in  the  following 
June.  Fortunately  they  had  the  run  of  the  sheep,  and  abundant 
sea-fowl,  and  their  clothes  being  worn  out,  they  made  for  themselves 
garment49  of  sheep-skin  and  skins  of  feathered  fowl. 

They  found  winter  quarters  all  ready  for  them,  in  that  curious 
relic  of  prehistoric  days  known  as  "  the  S taller  House,"  which  is 
a  sort  of  bee-hive  building  of  overlapping  stones,  near  to  which 
stands,  or  stood,  "  a  circle  of  huge  stones  fixed  perpendicularly  in 
the  ground,  with  one  in  the  centre." 

Macaulay  noted  on  St.  Kilda  one  very  remarkable  trace  of  old 
pagan  days.  On  the  face  of  a  hill  overlooking  the  road  across  the 
isle,  he  saw  a  very  large  square  white  stone,  on  which  the  people 
used  to  pour  libations  of  milk  every  Sunday  morning  to  Gruagach, 
the  fair-haired  daughter  of  the  Sun.  As  the  ancient  Eomans  were 
wont  to  offer  libations  of  milk  on  behalf  of  their  cattle,  so  did  these 


336  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

poor  islanders.  Whenever  the  cattle  of  St.  Kilda  were  moved 
from  one  pasture  to  another,  they  were  sanctified  with  salt,  water, 
and  fire,  and  prayer  was  offered  on  their  behalf  at  this  stone. 

Another  survival  of  olden  days  was  the  reverence  in  which  the 
people  of  St  Kilda  held  three  sacred  wells,  which  were  honoured 
with  votive  offerings  of  ragfl,  shells,  and  pebblea  One  well  waa 
reputed  to  cure  deafness. 

As  a  reminder  of  early  Christian  days,  there  were  three  old 
chapels  in  different  parts  of  the  isle,  known  as  Christ's  Church, 
St.  Brennan's,  and  St.  Columbus'. 

But  to  return  to  the  boats.  Mr.  Macaulay  records  another 
curious  incident  of  the  chances  of  island  life.  He  notes  how  the 
population  of  St.  Kilda  had  diminished  since  Martin's  visit — a  period 
of  less  than  seventy  years.  Martin  found  on  the  isle  one  hundred 
and  eighty  persons,  Macaulay  found  eighty-four,  t.  e.  thirty-four  males 
and  fifty  females.  (These  have  now  decreased  to  seventy-seven.) 
He  learnt  that  in  a.d.  1730  small-pox  had  been  introduced  to  the 
isle  by  some  clothes  which  *  had  belonged  to  a  man  who  had  died 
on  Harris,  and  whose  effects  had  most  unfortunately  been  carefully 
sent  to  his  home.  In  the  absence  of  any  medical  adviser,  the 
people  were  wholly  ignorant  how  to  treat  this  unknown  scourge, 
which  of  course  carried  them  off  wholesale.  ^Of  the  twenty-one 
families,  only  four  grown-up  persons  and  twenty-six  orphans 
survived. 

Strange  to  say,  one-half  of  the  survivors  owed  their  preservation 
to  the  fact  that  they  (three  men  and  eight  boys)  had  gone  to  one 
of  the  islets  to  capture  solan  geese.  The  boat,  as  usual,  returned 
to  St.  Kilda,  and  just  then  the  awful  pestilence  broke  out  Xo 
one  was  able  to  man  the  boat,  and  go  to  the  rescue  of  the  isolated 
fowlers,  who  vainly  stormed  and  lamented  over  this  unaccountable 
desertion.  There  they  remained,  in  strictest  quarantine,  from 
August  until  May,  when  the  usual  ministering  angel,  in  the  shape 
of  the  factor's  boat,  came  to  the  rescue,  and  brought  them  back  to 
find  the  isle  depopulated,  and  the  turf  growing  green  over  the 
graves  of  wives  and  parents,  brothers,  sisters,  and  little  ones. 

With  this  tradition  still  vividly  remembered,  we  need  scarcely 


"  CONTENTED  Wl'  LITTLK"  337 

wonder  that  the  first  feeling  of  the  islanders  on  seeing  any  unknown 
vessel  approach  is  one  of  dread,  lest  it  should  prove  the  means  of 
bringing  from  the  mainland  some  new  fever  or  other  infectious 
malady. 

Now  St  Kilda  possesses  four  or  five  boats  of  sufidcient  size  to 
fish  just  round  the  island  for  lythe,  ling,  cod,  and  mackerel  (they 
do  not  attempt  the  herring  fishery).  They  have  one  boat  a  little 
larger,  in  which  (under  pressure  of  great  need)  the  five  men  of 
whom  I  spoke  made  their  adventurous  voyage  to  Dunvegan,  in 
April  1883  (a  voyage  which  they  themselves  said  that  few  men  in 
the  Western  Isles  would  have  attempted).  Happily  the  people  of 
St.  Kilda  have  never  yet  lost  one  of  their  number  by  drowning, 
though  some  time  ago  they  lost  their  best  boat  in  a  storm. 

While  all  other  isles  are  petitioning  Government  for  aid  in 
impossible  forms,  the  men  of  St.  Kilda  only  plead  for  a  larger  boat, 
yet  not  so  large  that  they  cannot  haul  it  up  on  the  shore.  A 
decked  boat,  they  say,  would  be  useless  to  them.  Their  ideal  of  a 
desirable  boat  is  one  with  twenty-five  feet  keel,  and  nine  feet  seven 
inches  of  beam.  They  also  greatly  desire  the  construction  of  a 
pier,  to  lessen  the  danger  of  attempting  to  land  in  foul  weather, 
which  they  are  sometimes  unable  to  do,  and  have  to  face  the  storm 
and  run  round  the  island  to  seek  such  shelter  as  they  can  obtain  in 
a  little  creek  on  the  further  side. 

They  further  express  an  earnest  hope  that  the  island  may  be 
endowed  with  a  doctor,  and  also  with  a  schoolmaster  who  can 
teach  the  children  English  as  well  as  their  Gaelic  mother  tongue. 
Would  that  all  the  grievances  of  the  Western  Isles  could  be  as 
easily  remedied  as  the  simple  wants  of  these  hardy  men  of  St 
KUdal 


z 


338  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 


CHAPTEE  XL 

A   ROYAL   FUGITIVE. 

"  Te  trusted  in  our  Hieland  men, 

They  trusted  you,  dear  Charlie, 
They  kent  your  hiding  in  the  glen, 

Death  and  exile  braving. 
English  bribes  were  all  in  vain, 

Tho'  poor — and  poorer  we  maun  be, 
8iller  canna  buy  the  heart 

That  beateth  aye  for  tliine  and  thee. 


t» 


Whenever  you  make  up  your  mind  to  come  and  explore  these 
islands,  I  advise  you,  before  starting,  to  rub  up  your  Jacobite  lore  ; 
for  you  will  find  stories  about  Prince  Charlie  springing  up  from 
every  rock  and  cave ;  and  the  Highlanders  \n\l  think  you  sadly 
ignorant,  if  they  find  you  wanting  in  knowledge  on  so  important  a 
topia 

Being  myself  one  of  the  ungifted  many,  with  scant  memory  for 
biography,  and  less  for  history,  I  took  the  precaution  of  reading  up 
all  manner  of  Jacobite  books ;  and  from  these  (more  especially  from 
'  Browne's  History  of  the  Clans  ')''managed  to  trace  Prince  Charlie's 
wanderings  from  island  to  island ;  and  I  think  it  may  save  you 
some  trouble,  if  I  give  you  a  short  sketch  thereof. 

Of  course  you  remember  how,  after  the  terrible  defeat  of 
CuUoden,  1745,  Charles  escaped  first  to  the  wilds  of  Eoss-shire. 
This  being  too  hazardous  a  hiding-place,  he  embarked  in  an  open 


PRINCE  CHARLIE  AT  BEKBECXJLA.  339 

boat  for  the  Hebridea  A  violent  storm  arose ;  raia  pouring  in 
torrents,  and  vivid  lightning,  which  only  revealed  the  hlackness  of 
raging  waters  on  every  side,  while  thunder  crashed  over  the  heads 
of  the  little  company.  They  had  no  compass,  and  had  to  drive 
hefore  the  wind,  fearing  lest  the  fury  of  the  waves  should  dash 
them  on  the  coast  of  Skye,  where  the  Government  had  troops 
watching  for  the  Prince. 

To  their  intense  relief,  when  the  day  broke,  they  found  them- 
selves on  the  coast  of  Benbecula,  a  small  island  lying  between 
North  and  South  ULst,  and  connected  with  both  hy  fords,  through 
which  at  low  water  you  can  drive  or  walk.  These,  together  with 
Harris  and  Lewis,  form  the  Long  Island  ;  though,  in  point  of  fact, 
the  sound  of  Harris  completely  divides  the  two  latter  from  the 
former.     Here,  for  a  while,  Charles  found  safety  in  a  deserted  hut. 

His  pursuers,  stimulated  by  the  promised  reward  of  £30,000 
for  his  apprehension,  were  not  idle.  Being  fully  convinced 
that  he  had  found  refuge  in  the  isles,  they  adopted  the  plan  of 
taking  the  furthest  point  first,  and  sailed  to  St.  Kilda.  The 
terrified  inhabitants  fled,  and  concealed  themselves  in  their  rocky 
caves  and  cliffs.  Some  of  them  were,  however,  captured,  and 
brought  before  General  Campbell,  who  inquired  what  had  become 
of  *'  The  Pretender,"  to  which  they  replied  that  they  had  never 
heard  of  such  a  person;  but  they  believed  that  their  laird 
(Macleod)  had  lately  been  at  war  with  a  woman  at  a  great  distance, 
and  had  overcome  her.  This,  they  said,  was  all  they  knew  of  the 
affairs  of  the  world. 

Meanwhile,  in  the  hut  on  Benbecula,  the  bonnie  Prince,  taking 
the  old  sail  of  the  boat  as  his  only  bed,  slept  the  sleep  of  the  weary, 
on  the  hard  earth;  and  two  days  later,  he  and  his  little  party 
sailed  for  Stornoway,  hoping  to  pass  themselves  off  as  the  ship- 
wrecked crew  of  an  Orkney  boat,  and  so  be  able  to  hire  a  vessel, 
under  pretext  of  returning  home,  and  thus  escape  to  France.  A 
violent  gale,  however,  compelled  them  to  put  in  at  the  small  island 
of  Scalpa  (or  Glass),  near  Harris,  where  they  assumed  the  name 
of  Sinclair,  and,  in  their  character  of  Orkney  merchants,  were 
hospitably  entertained  by  a  farmer,  who  insisted  on  their  remaining 

Z  2 


340  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

with  him  while  one  of  the  party  went  on  to  Stornoway  to  hire  a 
yessel. 

This  being  done,  Charles  again  sailed ;  and  again  the  wind  was 
contrary,  and  he  was  compelled  to  land  in  Loch  Seaforth,  in  the 
island  of  Lewis,  whence  on  a  dark  and  rainy  night  he  had  to  walk 
over  a  wild  and  trackless  waste.  The  youug  Highlander  who 
acted  as  his  guide,  lost  his  way,  and  so  it  was  not  till  the  following 
day  at  noon,  that  they  reached  Stornoway ;  a  fortunate  accident, 
inasmuch  as  the  Presbyterian  minister  of  South  Uist  had  sent 
information  that  the  Prince  had  landed  with  500  men  to  bum  the 
town  and  carry  off  the  cattle ;  in  consequence  of  which,  the 
inhabitants  were  all  rising  in  arms  to  oppose  him. 

As  it  was,  a  trusty  friend  (came  to  meet  him  at  the  Point  of 
Arynish,  half  a  mile  from  the  town,  bringing  provisions,  which  the 
wanderers  sorely  needed,  having  tasted  nothing  for  eighteen  hours, 
during  which  they  had  been  drenched  to  the  skin.  Here  a  shelter 
for  the  night  was  procured,  and  a  cow  bought  and  slaughtered,  tho 
Prince  taking  his  share  in  the  rough  cookery,  mixing  oatmeal  with 
the  brains  of  the  cow,  and  making  cakes,  which  be  baked  before 
the  fire. 

The  captain  of  the  vessel  which  they  had  hired  now  positively 
refused  to  stand  by  his  engagement ;  so  the  Prince  had  once  more 
to  sail  from  these  inhospitable  shores^  and  take  refuge  on  the 
smaller  islands ;  a  desolate  rock  called  Iffurt,  or  Euim,  being  his 
next  hiding-place  for  a  few  days.  A  roofless  hut  was  his  solo 
shelter;  one  of  the  little  band  keeping  watch  while  the  others 
slept. 

This  becoming  unendurable,  it  was  resolved  to  return  to  Scalpa. 
Not  daring  to  remain  there,  they  started  once  morel  A  hard 
night's  rowing  followed,  the  sea  being  dead  calm;  but  towards 
morning  the  wind  rose,  and  they  scudded  along  the  coast  of  Harris. 

Now  a  new  danger  threatened  them.  They  were  detected  by  a 
man-o'-war,  and  chased  for  three  leagues,  till  they  escaped  among 
the  rocky  inlets  about  RodeL  After  this,  they  kept  close  in  shore, 
along  the  creeks  of  North  Uist,  when  they  were  espied  by  another 
warH»hip,  which  was  lying  in  Loch  Maddy.     This  also  gave  them 


PRINCE  CHARLIE  ON  THE  LONG  ISLE.  341 

cliase,  'when  they  again  narrowly  escaped,  and  once  more  landed 
on  Benbecula ;  soon  afterwards  such  a  storm  arose  as  drove  away 
the  ships,  and  gave  the  fugitives  breathing  time. 

All  this  time  their  sole  food  consisted  of  oatmeal,  mixed  with 
salt  water — as  they  had  no  fresh — and  washed  down  with  a  dram 
of  brandy  which  they  fortunately  had  on  board.  Great  was  their 
rejoicing  when  they  succeeded  in  capturing  as  many  crabs  as  filled 
a  small  pail,  which  Charles  himself  carried  to  a  miserable  hut  two 
miles  distant.  The  door  was  so  low  that  they  could  only  crawl 
in  on  hands  and  knees  till  they  dug  away  an  entrance. 

Here  they  remained  for  several  days,  during  which  a  welcome 
present  of  half  a  dozen  shirts,  shoes,  and  stockings,  and  needful 
food,  was  sent  by  Lady  Clanranald,  whose  husband,  Macdonald  of 
Clanranald,  was  lord  of  the  island,  and  faithful  to  his  Prinee,  for 
whom  he  contrived  a  more  secure  hiding-place  in  the  Forest  House 
of  Glen  Coradale,  in  South  Uist.  The  house  not  being  water-tight, 
two  cows'  hides  were  placed  upon  sticks  to  prevent  the  rain  from 
falling  on  him  when  asleep. 

On  this  island  there  was  abundance  of  game,  by  pursuit  of  which 
Charles  wiled  away  the  weary  hours,  as  well  as  kept  the  pot  boiling. 
Here  he  remained  for  upwards  of  a  month  in  perfect  confidence, 
although  his  hiding-place,  and  the  promised  reward  of  ^30,000  for 
his  apprehension,  were  alike  known  to  upwards  of  a  hundred  of  the 
poor  islanders. 

Meanwhile  every  creek  and  ferry  along  the  shore  was  guarded 
by  cutters,  sloops  of  war,  and  frigates,  and  upwards  of  1500  militia, 
as  well  as  some  regular  troops,  were  landed  in  different  parts  of  the 
Long  Island.  At  length  the  peril  became  so  imminent  that  he 
dared  remain  no  longer  in  South  Uist,  and  again  fled,  in  an  open 
boat,  first  to  the  tiny  islet  of  Quia,  thence  to  Bossinish,  and  again 
to  Loch  Boisdale,  backwards  and  forwards,  always  in  imminent 
danger.  At  one  time  no  less  than  fifteen  sail  were  in  sight,  There 
were  days  when  they  were  so  hard  pressed  that  all  hope  seemed 
lost,  and  when  no  food  could  be  obtained  save  the  limpets  and 
seaweeds  which  they  gathered  on  the  rocks. 

At  last  they  had  to  disperse  their  little  band,  and  Charles,  keeping 


342  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

with  him  only  one  companion,  0*Neil,  returned  to  Benbecula, 
where  happily  he  found  a  kinswoman  of  Clanranald,  namely  Flora 
Macdonaldy  a  name  thenceforth  honoured  among  women.  She  was 
the  daughter  of  Macdonald  of  Milton,  in  South  Uist;  but  her 
father  died  in  her  infancy,  and  her  mother  married  secondly 
Macdoncdd  of  Armadale,  in  Skye,  who  commanded  one  of  the 
militia  corps  now  in  pursuit  of  the  Prince. 

Flora  was  at  this  time  aged  four-and-twenty,  a  woman  fair  to  look 
upon,  and  as  wise  and  lovable  as  she  was  fair.  Her  own  descrip- 
tion of  the  Prince,  whom  she  now  met  for  the  first  time,  is  that  he 
looked  thin  and  delicate,  utterly  worn  out  by  fatigue,  yet  "  showing 
such  cheerfulness  and  fortitude  as  none  could  credit  but  those  who 
saw  him." 

Now  came  the  celebrated  plan  for  his  escape  to  Skye,  disguised 
as  her  tall  Irish  maid  Botty  Burke — a  difficult  matter,  as  even  she 
and  her  man-servant  were  taken  prisoners  by  the  militia  while 
attempting  to  cross  the  ford  on  their  return  to  Ormaclade  (Clan- 
ranald's  house),  where  she  was  to  procure  the  necessary  feminine 
raiment.  They  were  detained  all  night,  and  next  morning  were 
taken  before  the  commanding  officer,  who,  happily,  turned  out  to  be 
Armadale,  her  step-father,  from  whom  she  procured  the  necessary 
passports,  including  the  name  of  "  her  spinning-woman."  There 
is  little  doubt  that  he  more  than  suspected  who  the  Irish  maid 
really  waa 

Flora  Macdonald  now  sent  a  message  to  bid  the  Prinoe  join  her 
at  Eossinish ;  but  how  to  do  so  was  the  difficulty,  as  both  the  fords 
were  guarded.  At  length  a  small  boat  was  procured,  and,  after 
many  difficulties,  he  arrived,  drenched  to  the  skin  and  exhausted 
with  hunger  and  fatigue.  Here  he  was  rejoined  by  Flora  Mac- 
donald, Lady  Clanranald,  and  Mrs.  Macdonald.  They  found  him 
roasting  the  heart  of  a  sheep  on  a  wooden  spit,  and  he  met  their 
commiserations  with  cheery  words  and  jokes  at  his  own  expense. 
They  all  dined  together,  and  afterwards  Betty  Burke's  homely  dress 
was  produced.  It  consisted  of  a  flowered  linen  gown,  a  quilted 
petticoat,  white  apron,  and  cloak  of  dun  camlet  witli  hood,  as  worn 
by  the  Irish  peasants. 


PBIKCE  CHARLES  AT  MONKSTADT.         343 

In  the  evening  they  went  to  the  sea-shore,  near  where  the  boat 
lay,  when  a  messenger  rushed  down  to  say  that  a  large  party  of 
soldiers  was  at  the  house  in  quest  of  Charles.  Lady  Clanranald  at 
once  returned  home,  and  was  cross-examined  as  to  the  cause  of  her 
absence.     She  said  she  was  visiting  a  sick  child. 

While  the  Prince  and  Flora  were  waiting  on  the  shore,  four 
boats  full  of  armed  men  sailed  close  past  them,  happily  without 
detecting  them,  as  they  lay  hidden  behind  the  rocks.  As  soon  as 
the  darkness  covered  their  escape,  they  set  sail,  and  during  an 
anxious  and  stormy  night,  made  more  anxious  by  having  no 
compass,  Charles  inspirited  the  crew  with  songs  and  stories. 

When  morning  broke  they  were  thankful  to  find  they  were  off 
Skye,  near  the  point  of  Watemish.  Here,  however,  they  were 
fired  upon  by  MacLeod's  militia,  who  called  to  them  to  land,  a 
summons  to  which  they  paid  no  heed,  and  continued  to  row  on, 
but  slowly,  so  as  to  prevent  suspicion.  The  MacLeods  continued 
to  fire  till  the  boat  got  out  of  range,  no  one,  however,  being  hurt ; 
and  in  due  time  the  fugitives  reached  Monkstadt,  where  they 
landed. 

Monkstadt,  or  Mogstat,  belonged  to  Sir  Alexander  MacDonald, 
then  serving  with  the  Duke  of  Cumberland  at  Fort  Augustus. 
His  wife.  Lady  Margaret,  was  a  daughter  of  the  Earl  lof  Eglinton, 
a  true  Jacobite,  as  her  husband  also  was  at  heart,  though  too  timid 
to  declare  himself  for  the  Prince. 

Flora  went  at  once  to  the  house,  fortunately  accompanied  only 
by  her  man-servant,  for  there  she  found  an  officer  commanding  a 
detachment  of  militia,  who  questioned  her  closely  about  her  journey, 
but  was  satisfied  with  the  simplicity  of  her  account.  Lady 
Margaret,  on  hearing  of  the  arrival  of  the  Prince,  left  Flora  to  keep 
the  officer  in  play,  and  taking  Macdonald  of  Kingsburgh  into  the 
old  garden,  confided  to  him  the  state  of  affairs,  and  it  was  agreed 
that  his  house  would  be  the  best  hiding-place  for  the  present. 

He  therefore  went  down  to  the  shore  to  seek  for  Betty  Burke, 
and  they  started  together  on  foot.  To  disarm  all  suspicion.  Flora 
dined  with  Lady  Margaret,  and  helped  liur  to  entertain  her  military 
guo'it.     Afterwards  she  started  on  horseback,  accompanied  by  a 


344  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

Miss  Macdonald,  vfho  was  returning  home  escorted  by  two  servants. 
The  latter,  on  overtaking  the  pedestrians,  were  struck  by  the  tall 
woman  stalking  along  beside  Kingsburgh,  and  exclaimed  that  it 
must  either  be  an  Irishwoman  or  a  man  in  woman's  dress.  ''  Bless 
me"  said  the  maid,  *' what  lang  strides  the  jade  takes,  and  how 
awkwardly  she  manages  her  petticoats ! "  Flora  quickened  her 
pace  and  soon  distanced  the  walkers,  rejoicing  when  she  reached 
the  turn  of  the  road  where  Miss  Macdonald  and  her  prying  maid 
were  to  turn  aside.  Then  she  turned  down  the  path  to  Ringsbuigh, 
to  which  a  short  cut  across  the  hills  had  brought  the  Prince  at  the 
same  time,  that  is,  about  11  p.m. 

The  lady  of  the  house  had  gone  quietly  to  bed,  when  her 
daughter  ran  up  to  tell  her  that  her  father  had  brought  to  the 
house  the  ''  most  odd,  muckle,  ill-shaken-up  wife  that  ever  she  seed, 
and  taken  her  into  the  hall  too  !  ** 

The  good  wife  hastened  down  to  welcome  her  husband's  guest,  bat 
when  the  strange  Irishwoman  rose  and  gave  her  a  kiss  of  greeting, 
according  to  the  old  Highland  custom,  she  suspected  that  it  must 
be  some  nobleman  or  gentleman  in  disguise,  and,  going  aside  to  her 
husband,  asked  if  he  had  any  tidings  of  the  Prince.  On  hearing 
that  he  himself  stood  before  her,  the  anguish  of  having  only  such 
homely  fare  as  bacon  and  eggs  ready  to  ofifer  him,  and  the  over- 
whelming  pride  of  being  m<'uie  to  sit  down  at  table  with  him,  were 
almost  too  much  for  the  good  woman.  She  was  greatly  horrified 
on  hearing  that  the^boat  in  which  he  had  come  to  Skye  had  at  once 
been  sent  back  to  South  Uist,  as  she  said  there  was  great  risk  of 
capture,  and  of  the  boatmen  being  tortured  to  make  them  confess 
what  they  knew.  And  this  proved  to  be  precisely  what  did  happen, 
and  resulted  in  the  men  even  giving  a  minute  description  of  his 
disguise. 

To  the  infinite  satisfaction  of  the  Prince,  it  was  decided  that  he 
should  resume  the  garb  of  Old  Gaul,  his  host  giving  him  a  High- 
land dress  of  his  own,  which  he  was  to  put  on  when  safely  out  of 
the  house,  and  out  of  danger  of  being  discovered  by  the  servants. 
As  the  women  were  fastening  on  his  cap,  Mrs.  Macdonald  of 
Kingsburgh  bade  Flora  ask  for  a  lock  of  his  bonnie  hair.     This 


AN   UNTEMPTINQ  DRINKINQ  CUP.  345 

she  refused  to  do,  but  the  Prince,  gathering  the  meaning  of  the 
request,  which  was  made  in  Gaelic,  laid  his  head  on  Flora's  lap  and 
bade  her  cut  off  a  lock  herself,  a  precious  relic,  which  the  ladies 
dearly  treasured.  His  hostess  likewise  treasured  the  sheets  in 
which  he  had  slept,  and  vowed  they  should  ;iever  be  washed  or 
used  till  her  death,  when  they  should  serve  as  her  winding-sheet,  to 
which  use  they  were  accordingly  put. 

Meanwhile  ^it  'was  decided  that  the  Prince,  with  a  little  gillie 
for  his  guide,  should  walk  across  the  hills  to  Portree,  while  Flora 
rode  round  the  other  way.  The  object  was  to  get  to  the  isle  of 
Raasay,  which  was  then  clear  of  troops,  but  it  was  impossible  to 
trust  a  Portree  crew,  so  how  to  reach  the  island  was  the  next 
question.  At  length  the  young  MacLeods  of  Haasay,  one  of  whom 
had  been  sorely  wounded  at  Culloden,  recollected  that  a  small  boat 
lay  on  a  fresh-water  loch  about  a  mile  inland  from  Portree,  and 
these  brave  brothers,  with  the  help  of  some  women,  contrived  to 
drag  the  boat  over  soft  bog  and  rocky  ground  till  they  reached  the 
shore.  The  boat  was  old  and  leaky,  but  the  two  brothers,  with 
only  the  help  of  a  little  boy,  rowed  it  over  to  Baasay,  where  they 
found  their  cousin,  and  having  got  a  seaworthy  boat,  they  returned 
to  Portree. 

By  this  time  Charles  had  arrived  across  the  hills,  thoroughly 
drenched  by  the  pitiless  rain,  as  many  an  English  tourist  has  since 
been  while  trying  the  same  route,  only  much  as  they  have  occa- 
sionally grumbled  at  the  lack  of  refinement  of  the  old  Portree 
Hotel,  it  is  a  very  different  story  to  what  it  was  in  those  days, 
when  the  Prince  could  not  even  get  a  drink  of  milk,  nothing  but 
whiskey  and  water ;  and  the  only  substitute  for  a  tumbler  was  a 
dirty-looking  bucket,  used  by  the  landlord  for  baling  out  the  boat. 
Xot  even  one  of  those^  large  scallop-shells  out  of  which  spirits  were 
commonly  drunk,  seems  to  have  been  forthcoming — (the  shells 
alluded  to  in  old  Gaelic,  when  Ossian's  banquet-hall  is  called  '^  the 
hall  of  shells,"  the  host ''  the  chief  of  shells,"  the  feast ''  the  joy  of 
shells"!). 

1  The  drinking-Bhell,  or  Sliginsrechin,  was  long  used  in  Northern  dairies  for 


346  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

Charles  for  once  did  stare  at  this  obnoxious  drinking  cuachj  but 
a  whisper  from  Donald  Roy  reminded  him  of  caution,  so  he  took 
a  great  gulp  of  water,  lest  his  over-refinement  should  excite  com- 
ment. The  faithful  Donald  Eoy  Macdonald  was  also  alarmed  at 
Charles's  extravagance  in  refusing  the  change  for  a  sixpenny-bit,  in 
payment  of  four  pennyworth,  of  tobacco,  and  equal  carelessness  in 
refusing  silver  change  for  a  guinea. 

The  Prince  had  now  to  bid  farewell  to  the  leal  woman  who,  at 
the  imminent  risk  of  her  own  life,  had  rescued  him  from  so  many 
perils,  and  whom  he  was  never  to  meet  again.  He  presented  her 
with  his  own  miniature,  and  departed  before  daybreak,  carrying  his 
own  meagre  store  of  provisions,  a  cold  fowl  and  some  sugar  in  one 
bundle,  four  shirts  in  another,  a  bottle  of  brandy  and  one  of 
usquebaugh  hanging  from  his  belt.  Notwithstanding  this  Robinson 
Crusoe-like  appearance,  Donald  Roy  was  subjected  to  close  question- 
ing by  his  landlord,  who  said  he  thought  it  must  be  the  Prince  in 
disguise,  for  he  looked  so  noble.  However,  he  was  put  off  the  scent 
by  a  feigned  confidence,  and  the  Prince,  having  lain  concealed  on 
the  shore  till  midnight,  escaped  to  Raasay  with  the  faithful 
MacLeods.  Here  they  found  the  forsaken  hut  of  some  shepherds, 
and  soon  gathered  masses  of  heather  as  bedding,  no  bad  couch 
when  closely  packed  with  the  fragrant  blossoms  upwards,  and  (this 
was  in  the  month  of  July)  a  more  springy  mattress  could  hardly 
be  desired. 

In  this  little  island  there  seemed  to  be  comparative  safety,  but 
Charles  could  not  rest,  and  insisted  on  crossing  over  to  Trottemish 
in  Skye,  a  distance  of  fifteen  miles.  The  sea  was  very  rough,  and 
his  men  sorely  demurred,  but  Charles,  as  usual,  encouraged  them 
with  stories  and  Gaelic  songs,  which  he  had  picked  up,  together 
with  some  knowledge  of  that  language,  during  these  wanderings. 

The  men  rowed  with  a  will,  and  though  the  waves  were  boister- 
ous, and  there  was  a  very  violent  surf  along  the  shore,  they  con- 
trived about  midnight  to  land  at  Nicholson's  Rock  near  Scorebreck, 
drenched,  of  course.  A  steep  and  difficult  scramble  led  them  to  an 
old  cow-house,  the  only  shelter  they  could  obtain  on  the  bleak, 
desulate  coast.     Here  they  divided  a  wretched  meal  of  mouldy 


DISGUISES.  *  347 

oatrcake  and  cheese,  and  then,  soaked  as  they  were,  slept  tiQ  day  • 
light.  In  addition  to  other  discomforts,  the  luckless  Charles  was 
tormented  hy  toothache, — no  great  wonder  ! 

In  the  morning  he  dismissed  all  his  companions  save  Malcolm 
MacLeod,  whom  he  desired  to  conduct  him  to  Strath,  Mackinnon's 
country,  a  long  and  perilous  journey  across  the  island,  in  continual 
risk  of  meeting  soldiers.  They  chose  the  wildest  and  most  moun- 
tainous route,  and  having  agreed  that  the  Prince  should  pass  as 
MacLeod's  gilly,  they  exchanged  clothes,  and  Charles  kept  up  the 
character  by  walking  some  steps  in  the  rear,  carrying  their  joint 
bundle,  and  touching  his  bonnet  when  addressed  by  his  master  in 
presence  of  any  chance  passer-by.  As  they  neared  Mackinnon's 
country  they  feared  the  disguise  would  prove  insufficient,  where- 
upon Charles  pocketed  his  bonnet  and  wig  and  bound  his  head  with 
a  handkerchief;  he  also  tore  the  ruffles  from  his  shirt  and  the 
buckles  from  his  shoes,  which  he  fastened  with  a  string.  Never- 
theless, his  graceful  mien  and  carriage  betrayed  him  to  two  men 
of  Mackinnon's  clan,  who,  on  recognizing  him,  wept  bitterly. 
They  were  sworn  to  secrecy  on  a  naked  du*k,  and  kept  their 
oath. 

A  weary  march  of  twenty-four  Scotch  miles,  equal  to  thirty 
English,  brought  them  to  Ellighiul,  near  Kilmaree,  where  MacLeod's 
sister,  in  her  husband's  absence,  gave  them  a  cordial  welcome,  and 
such  a  supper  as  seemed  to  the  famishing  creatures  kingly  indeed. 
Charles  showed  due  reluctance  to  sit  down  at  table  with  his  sup- 
posed master,  who,  of  course,  insisted  on  his  doing  so.  But  when 
a  stout  Highland  lass  brought  water  to  wash  MacLeod's  feet,  and 
he  bade  her  do  likewise  for  the  sick  lad,  Lewis  Caw,  his  servant, 
her  pride  revolted  at  such  a  suggestion,  and  it  needed  much  coaxing 
to  induce  her  to  obey,  which  at  last  she  did,  but  so  roughly  that 
Charles  had  to  cry  for  mercy !  Utterly  exhausted,  the  travellers 
now  lay  down  for  a  few  hours'  sleep,  but  the  restless  mind  would 
not  sufPer  the  weary  body  to  lie  still,  and  Charles  arose  and  busied 
himself  nursing  Mrs.  Mackinnon's  wee  bairn. 

Her  husband  was  now  seen  approaching  the  house,  and  on  hear- 
ing who  his  guest  was,  he  was  transported  with  joy,  and  wished  at 


348  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

once  to  make  his  obeisance.  MacLeod,  however,  reminded  him 
of  the  danger  of  being  observed  by  servants,  so  he  entered  the 
room,  determined  to  pass  by '*  Lewis  Caw"  without  notice,  but 
the  faithful  Highlander  had  counted  too  much  on  his  strength  of 
will,  for  on  seeing  the  Prince  he  burst  into  tears,  and  had  to  leave 
the  room. 

The  laird  of  Mackinnon  was  now  informed  of  the  presence  of  the 
loved  fugitive,  and  the  old  chieftain  could  not  rest  till  he  had  done 
him  honu^e,  and  conducting  him  to  a  neighbouring  cave,  presented 
him  to  Lady  Mackinnon,  who  had  prepared  a  dinner  of  cold  meat, 
bread,  and  wine.  Towards  dusk  he  embarked,  accompanied  by  the 
two  Mackinnons,  and,  having  narrowly  escaped  capture  by  the 
men-o'-war,  succeeded  after  a  rough  voyage  in  reaching  the  coast  of 
Loch  Nevis  in  Moidart. 

His  further  adventures  on  the  mainland  continued  to  be  as  peril- 
ous as  those  in  the  Hebrides,  but  beuig  foreign  to  our  present 
object,  it  is  unnecessary  to  follow  him  further. 

Of  the  friends  who  had  hitherto  shared  his  danger,  the  majority 
were  shortly  captured  on  suspicion  of  having  aided  his  concealment, 
but,  for  the  most  part,  were  released  after  a  term  of  imprisonment. 
Flora  Macdonald  was  amongst  the  number ;  her  beauty  and  her 
wit  brought  her  favour  with  her  jailors,  and  after  a  term  of  honour- 
able captivity,  she  was  released  at  the  special  request  of  Frederick, 
Prince  of  Wales ;  and,  being  invited  to  the  house  of  Lady  Prim- 
rose, in  London,  became  an  object  of  considerable  interest  to  the 
great  folk  there. 

In  due  time  she  returned  to  Skye,  and  married  young  Macdonald 
of  Kingsburgh,  whom  she  accompanied  to  America  twenty-five  years 
later,  there  making  a  home  for  her  family,  which  consisted  of  five 
sons  and  two  daughters.  Having  sufiered  sore  privations  daring 
the  American  war,  she  once  more  returned  to  her  native  island,  and 
there  peacefully  ended  her  days. 

She  was  buried  in  the  old  kirkyard  of  Eilmuir  (the  cell  of  Mary), 
on  the  high  ground  overlooking  the  Long  Island,  and  the  sea ; 
across  which  she  had,  amid  so  many  perils,  brought  her  Prince  in 
safety  to  the  old  house  of  Monkstadt,  on  the  shore  below.    At  the 


FLORA  MACDONALD'S  GRAVE.  349 

time  of  our  visit  to  Skye,  a  little  mound  of  earth,  half  hidden  by 
rank  weeda  and  tall  grasses,  alone  marked  the  spot  where  sleeps  the 
dust  of  one  whose  honoured  name  is  now  a  household  word.  Soon 
afterwards  a  very  handsome  lona  Cross  of  red  granite  was  erected ; 
and  the  Highlanders,  willing  to  atone  for  haying  left  this  tribute  so 
long  unpaid,  took  care  that  the  modem  cross  should  over-top  the 
highest  of  the  ancient  monolith  crosses.  The  best  known  to  us  of 
these  areMacLean's  and  St.  Martin's  ^crosses  at  lona,  which  measure 
respectively  eleven  and  fourteen  feet.  The  new  cross  on  Rilmuir 
was  a  monolith  of  eighteen  feet  six  inches  in  height,  placed  on  a 
basement  ten  feet  high. 

Unfortunately,  being  in  a  very  exposed  situation,  the  new 
cross  seems  to  have  excited  the  enmity  of  the  wild  winds, 
which,  ere  long,  blew  so  mightily,  that  they  overthrew  it.  In  its 
fall  it  was  broken  and  much  injured;  it  was,  however,  repaired  and 
set  up  more  strongly  than  before,  though  shorn  of  much  of  its 
stature.  Nevertheless,  as  the  old  kirkyard  in  which  it  stands  lies 
300  feet  above  the  sea.  Flora  Macdonald's  grave  will  henceforth 
become  a  landmark  for  every  ship  that  sails  these  stormy  seas. 

*^  Far  over  the  hills  where  the  heather  grows  green, 
And  down  by  the  Corrie  that  sings  to  the  sea. 
The  bonnie  young  Flora  sat  sighing  her  hme. 
The  dew  on  her  plaid,  and  the  tear  in  her  e'e. 

"  She  gazed  on  the  bark,  on  the  breezes  that  swung 
Away  on  the  wave,  like  a  bird  of  the  main. 
And  aye  as  it  lessened,  she  sighed  and  she  sung ; 

Fareweel  to  the  lad  I  maun  ne'er  see  again, 
Fareweel  to  my  hero,  the  gallant  and  true, 
The  crown  o'  thy  Fathers  is  torn  frae  thy  brow.''      ^ 


350  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 


CHAPTER  XII. 

LEGENDS  AND  FOLK-LOKE. 

Tidal  Current  off  Vatemish— Scotch  Bagpipes— Associations— Dunvegan 
Castle — Legend  of  Somerled — MacLeods  and  MacDonalds — Ancestral 
Relics— Fate  of  Lady  Grange— Summer  Nights— Seals— Cormorants- 
Star- Fish— Fish  accounted  fit  for  Food— Eels— Turhot— Of  Scaleless  Fiah 
—Forbidden  Meats— Drawing  the  Nets-Lump-Fish—Jelly-Fish— Bar- 
nacle Geese — Families  who  claim  Descent  from  Seal-Maidens  or  Mermen 
— Corn-crakes. 

Once  more  the  beauty  of  bright  summer  days  tempted  us  to  a 
further  cruise;  this  time  to  MacLeod's  couutry,  in  the  west  of 
Skye. 

If  you  glance  at  a  map  of  the  Isle,  you  will  perceive  that  Uig, 
which  was  always  our  starting-point,  is  a  small  harbour  on  Loch 
Snizort,  while  Dunvegan  lies  on  Loch  Follart  These  two  sea-lochs 
are  separated  by  a  great  headland — Vatemish  Point— off  which 
flows  the  most  singular  tidal  current  I  have  ever  encountered. 

On  either  side  of  the  headland  the  sea  was  perfectly,  glassily 
calm,  and  the  little  yacht  flew  on  her  way  so  steadily,  that  wo  were 
scarcely  conscious  of  motion.  Suddenly  we  entered  a  helt  of  toss- 
ing, raging  waters,  breaking  in  great  three-sided  waves,  which  came 
dashing  right  over  the  deck — very  grand  and  beautiful  The 
steersman,  who  but  a  moment  before  could  have  guided  our  course 
with  one  finger,  now  found  that  he  had  work  enough  on  hand. 
This  battlefield  of  the  waves  is  about  two  miles  in  width.     Having 


DUNTEOAN. 


351 


eioseed  it  safely,  we  once  moie  fonud  oonelTes  in  calm  water,  gliding 
smoothly  along,  before  a  favouring  breeze. 

The  sunset  was  one  of  neve^  to-be-forgotten  loveliness.  Intensely 
brilliant  gold  and  yellow,  with  soft  misty  clouds,  giving  place  to 
brightest  rose-colour,  ere  yet  the  blue  ground-work  of  the  sky  had 
paled.  And  the  hills  were  flooded  with  softened  crimson,  and 
every  tint  was  reflected  in  the  waters,  till  twilight  crept  on,  and  the 
whole  surface  of  ocean  became  like  clear  green  liquid  glass.  Then, 
in  the  beautiful  clear  moonlight,  we  rounded  Danvegau  Point,  and 


at  midnight  anchored  in  the  quiet  harbour  just  below  the  Castle, 
which,  with  its  foundation  of  grey  rock,  lay  reflected  as  in  a  glassy 
mirror. 

Long  before  the  rosy  flush  of  morning  had  faded  into  the  wan 
grey  day,  I  was  off  in  the  wee  boat,  and  got  a  sketch  of  the  old 
historic  Castle ;  then,  landing,  I  roamed  about  the  woods,  and 
noted  the  wealth  of  wild  flowers,  more  especially  the  golden 
mimulus,  which  was  growing  in  rank  profusion. 

Laden  with  dewy  tieasuies,  I  returned  on  board,  just  as  tlie 


352  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

morning  pipes  were  tuning  up  with  the  usual  "  Hi !  Johnnie  Cope," 
to  which  in  due  time  MacLeod's  piper  gave  answer  from  the  Castle 
terrace. 

I  mast  say  that  those  who  object  to  pipe  music  as  being  dbcord- 
ant,  can  never  have  heard  it  with  the  right  accompaniments  of  time 
and  place;  and  if  there  be  one  corner  of  Scotland  more  than 
another,  where  its  wailing  pathos  is  thoroughly  in  keeping  with  the 
wild  beauty  of  nature,  it  is  in  these  isles,  where,  I  grieve  to  say,  it 
is  much  discouraged  by  some  of  the  ecclesiastical  authorities,  who 
imagine  that  '^  the  mirth  of  tabrets  and  the  joy  of  harp  "  are  in 
some  mysterious  manner  the  parents  of  evil,  and  that  the  bagpipes 
are  the  very  incarnation  of  mischief.  Evidently  the  tradition 
which  tells  how  the  shepherds  played  their  pipes  at  Bethlehem 
finds  small  favour  with  them,  and  the  Chiistmas  piping  of  the 
Italian  pfifferari  in  memory  thereof,  would  doubtless  be  held 
criminal  indeed. 

I  believe  that  in  Barra,  and  South  Uist,  where  the  majority  of 
the  people  are  Roman  Catholics,  the  merry-hearted  still  have  a  fair 
share  of  "  music  and  dancing."  In  Skye,  Harris,  and  North  Uist, 
however,  these  vanities  are  discouraged  to  such  an  extent,  that  the 
mirth  of  the  land  is  gone.  No  longer  do  we  hear  of  a  piper  follow- 
ing  the  reapers  in  the  harvest-field,  and  keeping  behind  the  slowest 
workers  to  cheer  and  animate  them.  The  pipes  are  being  put  down 
most  effectually,  or,  at  least,  are  being  subjected  to  a  most  unfair 
persecution.  Would  that  it  might  work  its  usual  result,  and  that 
the  persecuted  pipes  might  sound  once  more  on  every  hill-side  in 
Scotland !  Meanwhile,  I  hear  of  one  instance  after  another  in 
which  the  luckless  musicians  have  refused  to  tune  up  as  of  old,  in 
accordance  with  promises  extorted  by  their  wives  and  other  spiritual 
guides. 

Even  the  public-houses  have  in  divers  cases  ejected  the  piper 
(though  perfectly  sober)  the  moment  he  volunteered  a  tune. 
Whiskey,  he  and  his  companions  might  have  in  abundance,  but 
such  ungodly  mirth  was  not  to  be  tolerated  in  a  Christian  man's 
house.  The  dismal  history  of  the  dancing  elder  of  North  Knap- 
dale,  in  Argyleshire,  who  in  1868  was  formally  excommunicated 


THE  BAGPIPES.  353 

from  the  Free  Kirk  for  the  sin  of  dancing  a  reel  at  his  son's  wed- 
ding, is  an  instance  which  happens  to  have  become  public,  because 
the  worthy  farmer,  whose  minister  had  declared  "that  dancing  was 
a  scandal,  a  sin  and  bitter  provocation  to  the  Lord,''  had  the 
courage  to  appeal  to  a  higher  court,  and  succeeded  in  getting  the 
first  sentence  reversed. 

I  fear  that  excellent  minister  must  have  had  a  very  low  opinion 
of  those  old  Hebrew  prophets  who  made  use  of  such  metaphors  as  to 
promise  the  Virgin  of  Israel  that  she  should  again  go  forth  adorned, 
with  her  timbrels  in  the  dances  of  them  that  make  merry,  and  that 
both  old  men  and  young  should  rejoice  together  with  her  in  the 
dance.  Moreover,  he  must  find  a  dire  stumbling-block  in  those 
sounds  of  music  and  dancing  which  followed  the  killing  of  a  certain 
fatted  calf.  Probably,  like  that  elder  brother,  he  would  have 
turned  away  from  the  door. 

But  though  the  voice  of  song  is  silenced,  the  light  wine  of  the 
country  is  by  no  means  at  a  discount ;  whether  in  the  street  or  the 
bothy,  it  holds  full  sway,  and  whatever  noise  of  rejoicing  may  greet 
your  ear,  probably  owes  its  origin  to  the  barley  bree. 

There  was  formerly  a  piper's  college  in  Skye,  which  gave  regular 
diplomas  to  its  best  men.^  It  was  under  supervision  of  the 
MacCrimmons,  who  from  generation  to  generation  held  ofiice  as 
MacLeod's  hereditary  pipers.  There  was  a  certain  cave  where 
MacCrimmon's  disciples  were  wont  to  study,  alone  and  unheard. 
A  rock  overhanging  the  sea  was  the  piper's  seat,  where  he  might 

'  The  Saxons  who  pretend  to  shudder  at  our  pipe  music,  quite  forget  that 
the  bagpipe  was  an  English  musical  instrument  of  very  old  standiug.  Chaucer 
has  recorded  of  his  miller,  that  **  A  bagpipe  well  ooude  he  blowe  and  sowne ; " 
and  it  is  further  stated  that  this  was  the  music  which  cheered  the  Canterbury 
pilgrims  on  their  journey.  The  instrument  itself  is  represented  on  divers  old 
EngUsh  carvings  ;  such  as  in  a  church  at  Cirencester,  which  dates  from  the 
time  of  Henry  the  Eighth.  It  also  occupies  a  prominent  place  on  the  organ 
screen  in  the  chapel  at  Magdalen  College,  Oxford,  which  represents  the 
celestial  choir  with  their  divers  instruments  of  music.  One  comfortable-look- 
ing angel  is  shown  working  Ms  drone  cheerily.  This  organ  screen,  though 
itself  somewhat  modem,  is  copied  in  all  its  details  from  ancient  carvings.  The 
pipes  are  also  found  carved  in  old  Melrose  Abbey,  and  on  certain  stones  in  the 
Orkneys. 

A  A 


354  IN   THE  HEBRIDES. 

practise  unmolested  to  his  heart's  content,  vith  such  wild  surroand- 
ing^,  waves,  cliffi,  and  echoes,  as  might  best  teach  him  to  interpret 
Nature's  own  rare  melodies.  The  college  endowment  was  a  farm, 
which  Macleod  gave  rent-free.  When  the  value  of  land  rose,  ho 
rentured  to  reclaim  a  portion  of  the  ground,  an  insult  which  the 
minstrels  could  not  brook,  so  they  arose  and  went  their  ways, 
leaving  their  rock  music-hall  to  the  seals  and  cormorants. 

MacDonald's  pipers,  the  MacCarters,  had  a  similar  college  at 
Peingowen.  Their  practising-ground  was  a  green  hillock  called 
Cnocphail.  Various  other  families  were  noted  for  their  hereditary 
talent  as  pipers,  but  the  names  of  these  two  are  well-nigh  as 
historical  as  those  of  their  masters.  That  piper's  golden  age  is  now, 
alas!  a  thing  of  the  past  Not  past,  however,  is  the  inspiring 
power  of  the  shrill  notes  which  stir  the  inmost  hearb  of  every  true- 
born  Highlander.  So  well  did  the  English  know  their  influence, 
that  when,  after  the  dispersion  of  Prince  Charlie's  troops,  the 
unhappy  pipers  tried  to  plead  that  they  had  not  carried  arms 
against  the  King,  it  was  decided  that  their  jHpes  were  truly  instru- 
ments of  war.  And  so,  in  truth,  they  may  be  called,  for  no  High- 
land regiments  would  advance  to  battle  without  the  war-pipe  of  the 
Gael  to  inspirit  them,  and  often  the  piper  has  fallen  in  the  thickest 
of  the  fire  while  cheering  his  comrades  to  victory  with  his  most 
soul-inspiring  music. 

There  have  been  instances  (as  in  the  case  of  the  78th  High- 
landers at  Argaum)  when  it  has  been  necessary  to  silence  the 
pipes  as  the  only  means  of  restraining  the  men  from  breaking  the 
line  and  rushing  upon  the  foe  before  the  time.  In  various  other 
cases,  the  sadden  burst  of  **  the  gathering  "  has  been  the  signal  for 
such  a  charge  as  has  caused  the  foe  to  fly  utterly  discomflted. 
Among  the  stories  of  old'days  are  several  memories  of  the  pipers  at 
Waterloo;  how  the  pipe  major  of  the  92nd  stood  on  a  hUlock 
where  the  shot  was  flying  like  haH,  without  thought  of  danger,  only 
bent  on  cheering  his  comrades  with  the  inspiriting  notes.  One  of 
his  brother  pipers  received  a  shot  in  the  drone  at  the  beginning  of 
the  battle,  whereupon,  half  mad  with  rage,  he  drew  his  broad- 
sword, and  rushed  into  the  thickest  of  the  fight  to  wreak  vengeance 


"THE  PIPES."  355 

on  the  destroyers  of  his  precious  pipes,  whose  fate  he  soon 
shared. 

When  the  piper  of  the  71st  was  advancing  at  the  battle  of 
Vimiera,  he  was  wounded  in  the  le^  bj  a  musket-ball,  and  utterly 
disabled.  Nevertheless,  he  swore  his  pipes  should  do  their  work, 
and  sitting  on  the  ground,  he  managed,  in  spite  of  his  pain,  to  keep 
up  such  warlike  notes  as  might  best  inspire  his  brethren,  and  well 
they  fought  that  day. 

At  the  storming  of  Ciudad  Rodrigo  it  is  recorded  that  McLauch- 
Ian,  piper  to  the  74(h  Highlanders,  being  foremost  in  the  escalade, 
marched  calmly  along  the  ramparts,  playing  "  The  Campbells  are 
coming,"  till  a  shot,  piercing  his  bagpipe,  silenced  its  music.  He 
quietly  sat  down  on  a  gun-carriage,  and,  amid  a  storm  of  shot  and 
shell,  repaired  the  damage,  and  speedily  tuned  up  again,  to  the 
entire  discomfiture  of  the  foe,  for  as  Scott  has  it — ''When  the 
pibroch  bids  the  battle  rave,"  *'  Where  lives  the  desperate  foe  that 
for  such  onset  staid  1 " 

".  .  .  .  For  with  the  breath  which  fills  : 

Their  mountain  pipe,  so  fill  the  mountaineen 
With  the  fierce  daring,  which  instils 
The  stirring  memory  of  a  thousand  years. 
And  Evan's, — Donald's  fame,  rings  in  each  clansman's  ears ! " 

You  remember  Kapler's  high  praise  of  the  brave  Highland 
regiments,  who  rushed  to  the  charge  ''with  colours  flying,  and 
pipes  playing,  as  if  going  to  a  review."  Those  who  have  led  them 
in  our  own  day,  can  best  say  how  well  this  character  has  been 
kept  up. 

However  little  a  Southron  may  be  able  to  enter  into  this 
passionate  enthusiasm  for  what,  to  bis  ear,  seems  shrill  discord — 
he  must  bear  in  mind  that,  just  as  in  him,  the  scent  of  a  flower,  or 
a  few  chords  of  old  melody,  will  sometimes  waken  up  a  long  train 
of  forgotten  memories  ;  so,  to  one  whose  earliest  love  has  been  for 
the  wild  mists  and  mountains,  these  strains  bring  back  thoughts  of 
home,  and  the  memory  of  the  dead  and  of  the  absent  comes  float- 
ing back  as  on  a  breath  from  the  moorland^  mingling  with  a 

A  A  2 


356  IN   THE  HEBRIDES. 

thousand  cherished,  early  associations,  such  as  flood  the  innermost 
heart  with  hidden  tears. 

How  often  we  have  heard  of  men  whose  lives  have  heen  spent 
toiling  in  fai^away  lands  till  all  home  memories  seemed  dimmed ; 
yet  to  whom,  in  houi:s  of  weakness,  and  pain,  and  death,  the  dear 
mountain-tongue  came  hack,  and  with  it,  the  longing  that  the  wild 
music  they  loved  in  boyhood,  might  soothe  their  last  hours. 

I  truly  may  bear  witness  how,  twice  within  one  year,^  while 

^  Roualeyn  Gordon  Oummlng  died  at  Fort  Augustus  March  24th,  1866,  in 
the  grey  old  fort,  at  the  head  of  Loch  Ness,  which  has  now  been  demolished, 
aad  replaced  by  a  Roman  Catholic  college.  Dear  to  us  is  the  memory  of  that 
strange  sick  room— its  rude  walls  still  beanug  the  names  of  the  Duke  of 
Cumberland's  soldiers,  carved  in  their  idle  leisure,  but  adorned  with  trophies 
of  the  chase,  each  one  of  which  recalled  to  the  dylug  Hunter  some  memory  of 
triumph  in  the  days  of  joyous  health.  Now  his  mighty  strength  was  slowly 
ebbing,  as  night  after  night  passed  by  in  pain  and  weariness  ;  yet  to  that 
Lion-Uke  beauty  each  morning  seemed  to  add  a  new  refining  touch  of  radiant 
Spirit-light— a  Light  that  foreshadowed  the  Celestial  Dawn. 

Night  and  day,  through  long  weeks  of  suffering,  his  faithful  piper,  Tom 
Moffat,  never  left  his  side,  tending  him  with  unwearied  devotion,  the  love  that 
"  passeth  the  love  of  woman  "—fanning  his  fevered  brow  with  the  wing  of  a 
Golden  Eagle,— and  ever  ready,  at  his  bidding,  to  tune  up  the  old  pipes,  and 
play  the  wild  melodies  he  most  loved. 

His  elder  brother,  Sir  Alexander  Penrose  Gordon  Cumming,  only  survived 
liim  five  months — five  weary  months  of  pain,-— during  which  he  too  lay 

"  Dying  in  pride  of  manhood,  ere  to  gvey 
One  lock  had  turned,  or  from  his  eagle  face 
And  stag-like  form.  Time's  touch  of  slow  decay 
Had  reft  the  strength  and  beauty  of  his  race."  * 

Far  from  his  beautiful  Highland  home,  and  from  the  woods  and  river  he 
loved  so  dearly,  he  lay,  held  prisoner  by  dire  illness,  in  the  dull  town. 

One  night,  shortly  before  his  death,  when,  after  long  fevered  hours  of  pain, 
he  lay  exhausted,  yet  unable  to  sleep,  and  the  home- voices,  usually  so  dear  to 
him,  seemed  to  have  lost  their  spell,  he  exclaimed,  '*  Oh  !  that  I  could  hear  a 
pibroch  once  more  before  I  die  I " 

It  seemed  like  a  Heaven-sent  answer  to  that  cry,  that  at  this  moment,  faint, 
but  clear,  there  floated  on  the  night-wind  a  strain  of  distant  pipe-music. 
Nearer  and  nearer  sounded  the  swelling  notes,  played  by  the  piper  of  a  Scotch 

*  *  The  Chieftain's  Coronach. '   By  his  friend.  Sir  Noel  Paton. 


MUSIC   FOR   DYING   EARS.  357 

watching  the  last  weary  sufferings  of  two  of  the  truest  Highlanders 
that  ever  trod  heather,  I  noted  the  same  craving  for  **  the  dear  old 
pipes/'  and  the  satisfied  calm  that  drove  away  the  tossing  restless- 
uesSy  as  shrill  pihroch,  and  wild,  wailing  lament  succeeded  one 
another,  and  at  last  hrought  sweet,  peaceful  sleep,  which  doctors' 
opiates  had  failed  to  procure. 

Nor  can  I  ever  again  listen  to  those  piercing  notes,  without  a 
vision  of  an  early  morning,  when  a  dark  funeral  procession  sailed 
up  a  misty  loch,  and  thrilling  pibrochs  re-echoed  from  hill  to  hill, 
awakening  the  sea-birds,  which  circled  round  the  boat  with  plaintive 
cries,  as  though  they  too  were  wailing  for  the  "  going  away  "  of  one 
who  loved  all  wild  and  beautiful  things  and  creatures. 

««««««« 

Dunvegan  is  the  quaintest  medley  of  the  architecture  of  every 
age ;  each  proprietor,  from  the  ninth  to  the  nineteenth  century, 
having  left  his  mark  on  the  old  castle.  The  oldest  portion  is  a 
square  tower,  with  walls  of  immense  thickness  (from  nine  to  twelve 
feet),  supposed  to  be  the  work  of  Norwegians.  Its  position  is  very 
fine,  with  surroundings  of  wood,  Skye's  rarest  treasure,  and  stand- 
ing on  a  mass  of  grey  rock,  which  juts  out  into  the  sea ;  landlocked, 
— and,  on  this  morning,  calm  as  a  mirror,  reflecting  each  line  of  the 
old  building,  as  the  water  lips  round  the  foot  of  the  crag.  When 
the  tide  ebbs,  there  is  revealed  a  broad  belt  of  the  richest  brown 
and  gold  tangle,  and  yellow  sand. 

Before  we  had  finished  breakfast,  the  young  master  of  Macleod 
came  alongside  in  his  canoe  to  bid  us  welcome ;  and  the  pleasan 
greetings  of  old  friends  soon  consoled  us  for  the  pitiless  rain  which 
now  commenced. 

regiment,  who,  when  he  learnt  how  precious  to  the  ear  of  the  dying  Ghie 
was  this  breath  from  the  breezy  hills,  gladly  halted,  and  made  the  dull  street 
re-echo  the  notes  of  pibrochs  and  wild  laments.  "That  U  music,"  he 
murmured ;  and,  when  at  length  the  piper  went  his  way,  the  long-stiTrng 
nerves  were  soothed,  and  the  blessing  of  sleep,  so  long  denied,— a  deep 
refresliing  sleep, — ^told  how  well  the  dear,  dear  music  of  the  mountains  had 
worked  its  speU. 

"  Music  that  gentller  on  the  spirit  lies 
Than  tired  eyelids  upon  tired  eyes." 


S58  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

As  we  landed,  and  passed  up  the  steep  ascent  to  the  castle, 
visions  of  Viking  came  over  us,  and  of  the  turhulent  feasts  and 
frays  which  these  old  walls  have  witnessed  in  a  thousand  successive 
years.  Few  homes  possess  so  long  a  continuous  history.  We 
entered  hy  a  drawhridge,  which  spans  the  moat — an  ohject  always 
suggestive  of  days  of  sudden  danger  and  of  siege.  And  there  are 
dungeons,  of  course,  in  the  thickness  of  the  walls — so-called 
dungeons  at  least — though,  like  those  at  Gordonstown,  where,  in  the 
dear  old  days  of  our  childhood,  we  played  such  merry  games  at 
hide^nd'Seek,  I  fancy  these  were  rather  devised  for  the  safety  of 
their  inmates,  than  for  the  imprisonment  of  their  foes. 

The  foes  of  the  Macleods  were  generally  the  Macdonalds ;  for,  in 
spite  of  frequent  intermarriages,  the  two  clans  were  perpetually  at 
feud,  "  putting  wedding  rings  on  each  other's  fingers,  and  dirks  into 
each  other's  hearts.*' 

Thus,  the  old  Norse  and  the  Celtic  nature  are  fully  comhined 
in  these  races ;  for  the  MacLeods  were  originally  pure  Norsemen, 
bearing  such  names  as  Torquil  and  Thormod  (who  were  the  two  sons 
of  the  original  ancestral  Leod),  while  the  Macdonald  who  built  the 
old  castle  was  a  Celt.  He  gave  his  daughter  (his  only  child)  in 
marriage  to  Macleod  of  Harris ;  and  on  one  occasion,  when  rowing 
across  the  Minch  to  meet  his  son-in-law  and  grandchild,  the  two 
galleys  came  into  collision  in  a  thick  mist.  Tradition  says  that 
the  dutiful  daughter  bade  her  husband  steer  on  and  strike  her 
father's  smaller  ship.  Be  that  as  it  may,  the  little  galley  did  sink, 
and  Macdonald  was  drowned.  Then  MacLeod  rowed  over  to 
Dun  vegan,  and  took  possession  of  it  in  the  name  of  his  wife. 

Above  the  doorway  of  one  of  the  offices,  there  is  an  old  stone 
carving,  where  the  arms  of  Macdonald  are  quartered  with  those  of 
MacLeod,  commemorating  one  of  those  strange  political  marriages 
which  resulted  in  so  little  peace. 

Through  these,  the  Macleods,  as  well  as  the  Macdonalds,  claim 
descent  from  that  old  hero  of  many  legends,  the  great  Somerled, 
whose  ruined  castle  we  marked  at  Saddell,  in  Gantyre.  He  was 
the  youngest  and  fairest  son  of  Godfrey,  lord  of  Argyle — a  mighty 
hunter,  to  whom  the  men  of  the  Western  Isles  made  offer  of  their 


SOMERLED.  359 

homage,  if  he  would  come  over  to  Skyo,  and  be  their  cliief. 
Somerled  was  standing  beside  a  dark  river,  when  the  Islesmen 
found  him.  He  pondered  for  awhile  on  their  words,  then  made 
answer,  that  if  in  yonder  dark  pool  he  caught  a  clean  run  salmon, 
he  would  go  with  them.     If  not,  he  would  remain  where  he  was.  ' 

In  a  few  moments,  a  silvery  fish  lay  on  the  bank,  and  a  shout  of 
joy  from  his  new  subjects  proclaimed  him  their  chief.  Then  he 
forsook  his  father's  halls,  and  his  beloved  chase,  and  led  his  men  to 
conquer  neighbouring  isles.  Wild  deeds  of  valour  by  land  and 
sea,  soon  made  his  fame  ring  far  and  near ;  and  in  due  time  he 
became  both  Thane  of  Argyle  and  Lord  of  the  Hebrides. 

At  his  death,  his  eldest  son  Eonald  became  Lord  of  the  Isles, 
while  Dougal,  the  second  son,  succeeded  to  the  territories  on  the 
mainland,  and  founded  the  family  of  MacDougal  of  Lome ;  making 
his  chief  stronghold  at  the  Castle  of  DunstafEnage ;  thence  ruling 
his  country  with  an  iron  hand.  Not  that  he  was  allowed  to  hold 
it  undisturbed.  On  the  opposite  shore  of  Loch  Awe,  the  Camp- 
bells were  already  established,  and  Cailean  M6r,  the  great  Colin, 
Knight  of  Lochow,  was  not  one  tamely  to  own  any  superior.  So 
there  were  fights  and  forays,  fire  and  bloodshed,  even  till  the  days 
of  the  Bruce,  against  whom  MacDougal  fought  with  desperate  hate, 
to  avenge  the  murder  of  his  wife's  father,  the  Red  Comyn. 

Then  the  misty  heights  of  Ben  Cruachan,  its  dark  passes,  and 
the  darker  lake  below,  re-echoed  the  shouts  of  conflict,  on  many  a 
hard-fought  day.  Dunstaffnage  was  besieged  and  taken,  and  the 
broad  lands  of  Argyle  were  forfeited,  and,  after  being  held  for 
awhile  by  the  Stewarts,  were  conferred  on  the  Campbells,  who  had 
proved  staunch  supporters  of  the  Bruce  in  his  dark  hours  of 
trouble. 

On  Sir  Neil  Campbell,  who  had  fought "  shouther  to  shouther"^ 
with  the  King  at  Bannockbum,he  bestowed  the  hand  of  his  sister, 
the  Lady  Mary  Bruce  ;  nor  was  it  long  before  the  Chieftainship  of 
Argyle  and  the  Lordship  of  Lome  likewise  passed  into  the  same 
strong  keeping.  By  a  wise  stroke  of  policy  in  love,  Colin,  the  first 
Earl  of  Argyle,  wooed  and  wedded  the  Lady  Isabel,  daughter  of  the 

^  Shoulder  to  shoulder. 


360  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

Lord  of  the  Isles,  and  consequently  a  direct  descendant  of  Somerled, 
thus  sealing  the  peace  between  the  boar's  head  of  the  Campbells  and 
the  galley  of  the  isles. 

To  return  to  the  MacLeods  in  their  sea-girt  fortress.  Among 
the  treasures  of  Dunvegan  is  a  green  fairy  flag,  which  some 
materialists  believe  to  be  only  a  relic  of  the  Crusades — a  consecrated 
banner  of  the  Knights  Templars,  but  which  all  true  Highlanders 
affirm  to  have  been  a  gift  to^  some  ancestral  MacLeod,  from  a  fairy 
maiden.  She  promised  that  on  three  distinct  occasions  when  he  or 
his  clan  were  in  danger,  he  might  wave  the  flag  with  certainty  of 
relief. 

MacLeod  proved  false  to  his  fairy,  and  married  a  mere  common- 
place human  maiden,  whereupon  his  spirit  wife  waxed  wroth,  and 
ordained  that  every  woman  in  the  clan  should  give  birth  to  a  dead 
child,  and  that  all  the  cattle  should  have  dead  calves.  Then  a 
loud  and  bitter  wail  rang  through  the  green  valleys,  and  along  the 
shores,  and  MacLeod,  in  sore  tribulation,  bethought  him  of  the 
flag.  The  fairy  proved  more  true  to  her  words  than  her  lover  had 
been  to  his,  so  she  withdrew  her  spell,  and  the  clan  once  more 
flourished. 

Then  came  a  terrible  battle,  when  MacLeod  and  his  men  were 
well-nigh  routed,  and  again,  though  he  must  have  been  sorely 
ashamed  of  himself,  he  waved  the  flag,  and  the  victory  was  his. 
Why  the  flag  was  not  waved  for  the  third  time,  when  the  isles 
were  ruined  by  the  failure  of  the  kelp  trade,  or  during  the  potato 
famine,  MacLeod  best  knows.  Perhaps  he  thought  it  well  to  save 
one  "  last  tune  in  the  old  fiddle."  At  all  events  the  green  flag  still 
lies  in  its  old  case,  and  is  such  a  treasure  as  no  other  laird  can 
show. 

There  is  also  a  precious  drinking  cup,  bearing  date  a.d.  993. 
It  stands  about  ten  inches  high,  on  silver  feet,  and  is  curiously 
wrought  in  wood  with  embossed  silver,  once  studded  with  precious 
stones,  and  still  retaining  some  bits  of  coral.  It  bears  an  inscrip- 
tion, telling  how  certain  old  Norsemen  died,  trusting  in  Christ's 
mercy  ;  and  within  the  cup,  the  letters  IHS  are  four  times  repeated. 
Hence  we  infer  its  original  use  as  a  chalice — though  for  many  a 


BORIE  MHOR.  361 

long  year  it  has  crowned  the  wildest  scenes  of  revelling  and 
drunkenness ;  such  as  were  held  in  these  wild  fastnesses  up  to 
very  modem  days. 

Another  drinking  trophy  is  Rorie  Mhor's  horn;  an  ox's  horn 
with  silver  rim,  which  holds  ahout  five  English  pints;  the  old 
custom  was  that  every  young  chief  should  prove  his  mettle  by 
draining  this  horn,  filled  to  the  brim  with  claret,  at  a  draught — 
but  in  this  degenerate  age  of  shams,  a  false  lining  within  the  horn 
enables  the  chieftain  to  pledge  his  vassals  in  a  much  shallower 
goblet. 

Big  Sir  Koderick  was  one  of  James  YI/s  knights,  and  his  royal 
master  seems  to  have  taken  an  amiable  interest  in  his  sobriety,  for 
we  find  his  name  in  an  order  of  the  Privy  Council  for  1616,  when 
it  was  enacted  that  MacLean  of  Duart,  and  Sir  Rorie  MacLeod, 
should  not  use  in  their  houses,  more  than  four  tun  of  wine  each ; 
Clanranald  was  limited  to  three  tun,  and  Coll,  Lochbuy,  and 
Mackinnon,  were  allowed  but  one — an  attempt  at  compulsory 
reformation,  which  must  have  encouraged  smuggling  to  an  un- 
wonted  degree. 

The  horn  is  not  the  sole  remaining  trace  of  the  Big  Knight 
Part  of  the  castle  was  built  by  him,  and  a  waterfall  close  by  is 
still  known  as  Korie  Mhor's  nurse,  because  he  loved  its  lullabies  to 
hush  his  slumbers !  On  the  opposite  side  of  the  loch  are  two  high 
hills,  known  as  MacLeod's  Tables ;  and  on  their  broad  flat  tops, 
the  pure  white  snow  lies  unmelted,  for  long  months,  as  though  it 
were  some  spotless  fairy  napery. 

MacLeod  has  his  maidens  also,  three  dark  rocks  rising  from  the 
sea,  which,  when  seen  through  foam  and  mist,  bear  some  fanciful 
likeness  to  the  mermaids,  whose  murmurous  songs  should  soothe 
the  dreams  of  the  old  sea  kings. 

Near  these  rock-maidens  is  a  cave,  which  for  some  time  was  the 
prison  of  the  unhappy  Lady  Grange,  wife  of  the  Lord  Justice 
Clerk ;  whose  sad  history  is  stranger  than  any  fiction.  In  an  evil 
hour  she  became  aware  that  her  husband  and  many  of  his  friends 
were  in  league  with  the  Jacobites  in  1715.     MacLeod  and  Mac- 

donald  agreed,  for  their  mutual  safety,  to  remove  her  to  some 

1 


362  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

distant  district  and  announce  her  death.     So  violently  was  this 
effected,  that  two  of  her  teeth  were  knocked  out  in  the  struggle. 

The  unhappy  lady  was  conveyed  to  Durinish,  and  kept  in  this 
dreary  cave,  whence  she  was  removed  to  Uist;  and  then  to  St. 
Kilda,  where  she  remained  seven  years.  Just  imagine  this  !  Seven 
years  in  St.  Kilda  ! !  Dreading  lest  any  clue  to  her  existence 
might  be  discovered,  her  persecutors  now  brought  her  back  to  Uist, 
and  to  Skye,  whence  she  contrived  to  despatch  a  letter  to  England, 
rolled  up  in  a  hank  of  wool. 

The  chance  purchaser  of  this  wool  forwarded  the  letter,  which 
thus  reached  its  destination  safely,  and  deliverance  seemed  at  hand. 
A  government  boat  was  despatched  in  search  of  her,  but  failed  in 
its  quest,  and  her  jailors  carried  her  back  to  Innis-fada,  the  Long 
Island,  carrying  in  the  boat  with  her,  a  rope  with  noose  and  heavy 
stone  attached,  wherewith  to  sink  her  to  the  lowest  depth  of  the 
sea,  rather  than  suffer  her  to  be  rescued.  The  poor  lady  finally 
died  in  Skye,  and  was  buried  in  the  old  kirkyard  of  Trumpan. 

Gladly  must  she  have  welcomed  the  close  of  her  sad  life,  for 
surely  few  of  Eve's  daughters  have  paid  so  dear  for  the  acquisition 
of  forbidden  knowledge.  Truly  hateful  in  her  ears  must  have  been 
the  ceaseless  moaning  of  the  wild  waves — for  ever  singing  the 
requiem  of  her  life's  gladness. 

To  us,  however,  rejoicing  in  the  glorious  liberty,  and  in  the 
blessed  summer  sunlight,  no  day  seemed  half  long  enough ;  and  we 
sought  to  lengthen  each,  by  lingering  on  sea  or  on  land,  far  into 
the  beautiful  night, — which  in  truth,  in  these  Isles,  means,  in 
summer,  no  niglit  at  all,  but  one  prolonged,  dreamy  twilight. 

Endless  was  the  delight  of  quietly  exploring  each  bay  and  head- 
land for  miles  round — never  hurried, — for  the  very  ideal  of  life  in 
the  Isles  is  to  ignore  Time.  So  we  wandered  where  fancy 
prompted,  seeking  out  strange  wild  creatures  in  their  chosen  homes, 
and  trusting  that  our  human  presence  might  not  too  rudely  scare 
them. 

Sometimes,  as  we  rowed  very  quietly  along  these  broken  shores, 
we  caught  glimpses  of  seals  basking  on  favourite  rocks;  or  else 
travelling  along  by  a  succession  of  jerks,  wriggling  as  they  move. 


SEALS.  363 

and  displaying  their  wonderful  flexibility  of  spine.  If  a  seal  is  in 
the  water,  notice  how  rapid  and  gracefid  are  his  movements,  and 
with  what  strength  he  swims;  but  he  is  so  shy,  that  he  will 
probably  have  vanished  before  you  have  well  made  him  out.  If 
wounded,  however,  and  compelled  to  meet  a  foe  at  close  quarters, 
a  grip  from  his  powerful  jaws  proves  him  not  altogether  a  helpless 
victim. 

I  cannot  imagine  what  peculiar  fancy  can  lead  him  to  swallow 
stones  of  quite  a  large  size,  which  he  does  freely — indeed  some 
seals  which  have  been  shot,  have  been  found  to  contain  quite  a 
gravel  bed.  It  really  seems  as  if  they  had  swallowed  it  for  ballast 
— perhaps  to  counteract  their  own  oily  tendency  to  float ! 

Another  marked  peculiarity  is  the  seal's  peculiar  deliberation  in 
breathing.  About  two  minutes  elapse  between  each  breath,  even 
when  he  is  basking  on  dry  rocks,  so  that  when  he  dives  and  wishes 
to  remain  under  water,  he  can  do  so,  with  wonderful  facility. 

I  believe  it  is  a  common  error  to  suppose  that  it  is  to  this  seal 
that  we  are  indebted  for  our  beautiful  soft  brown  seal-skin  coats. 
The  fur  seal  *  (Genus  Otary ;  so  called  from  possessing  an  external 
ear)  is  found  only  in  the  Pacific  and  Southern  Oceans,  chiefly  in 
the  neighbourhood  of  the  Falkland  and  South  Shetland  Isles ;  its 
silky  brown  fur  underlies  a  compact  coat  of  soft  brownish-grey  hair. 
Some  of  our  coats  are  also  made  from  the  fur  of  the  sea-otter,^ 
which  is  a  native  of  Behring's  Straits,  twice  the  size  of  the  common 
otter ;  its  fur  is  a  rich  black  tinged  with  brown.  Nevertheless,  our 
own  seal  ^  possesses  a  silvery  coat  hidden  beneath  his  rough  grey 
hair,  which  is  in  great  demand ;  this,  together  with  his  warm  inner 
coating  of  blubber,  has  proved  fatal  to  his  peace,  and  he  is  now 
comparatively  rare,  greatly  to  the  satisfaction  of  the  salmon  fishers, 
whose  nets  he  often  destroys  in  pursuit  of  the  fish,  to  say  nothing 
of  his  actually  frightening  the  latter  away  from  the  coast.^ 

The  cormorants,  too,  are  keen  fishers ;  you  will  see  them  pounce 
on  their  silvery  prey,  and  gluttonously  struggle  to  swallow  it  alive, 

*  Otaty  Falklandiea.  '  LtUra  Marina.  •  P?u)ca  Vitulina. 

^  We  gain  some  notion  of  the  multitude  of  seals  on  the  Newfoundland  coast, 
and  also  of  the  wholesale  manner  in  which  they  are  hunted,  by  glancing  at  the 


364  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

tlioiigh  it  may  be  twice  too  big  a  moutbful,  and  wriggles  most  pite- 
ously  during  the  process.  Vast  numbers  of  these  weird  black  birds 
(scarts,  we  call  them,)  live  in  every  cave  along  this  rocky  shore. 
They  choose  some  quiet  nook,  where  they  heap  up  a  mass  of  sea- 
weed for  their  nest,  and,  with  the  unerring  instinct  of  all  sea-birds, 
select  a  spot  where  the  highest  spring-tide  cannot  touch  them. 
Here  they  sit,  guarding  their  homes,  or  else  stand  solemn  and 
immovable  on  the  rock  ledges,  and  never  stir  as  we  :  enter  the 
cavern,  till,  as  we  come  close  to  them,  a  sudden  flap  from  their 
dusky  wings  startles  us,  as  though  some  spirit  of  darkness  would 
resent  our  invasion.  Then  they  dart  to  and  fro  with  wild  piercing 
cries,  just  as  they  do.  before  stormy  weather,  when  they  come  forth 
from  their  caves,  as  birds  of  ill  omen  to  all  aea-farers. 

There  is  something  so  demoniacal  about  the  bird,  that  the  sight 
of  it  always  recalls  Milton's  legend  of  its  form,  having  been  the 
first  selected  by  the  Arch-Fiend,  when,  perched  on  the  Tree  of 
Life,  he  overlooked  with  envious  eye  that  fair  garden,  and  plotted 
how  to  wreak ^his  malice  on  the  blissful  pair.  They  are,  however, 
capable  of  being  trained  as  useful  servants,  and  I  often  wonder 
why  their  fishing  propensities  are  not  turned  to  account  in  this 
country,  as  well  as  in  the  Celestial  Empire,  where  vast  numbers  of 


cargoes  of  the  Dundee  Seal  and  Whale  Fishing  Company's  Steamers,  on  re- 
turning from  their  first  trip,  in  April  18S3,  as  shown  in  the  following  list : — 

.    20,100  seals. 

.    25,000 


The  Resduie . 
Ths  Thetis  . 
The  Narwhal 
The  Esquimaux 
The  Arctic  . 
The  Aurora  . 


13,000 
13,000 
10,000 
10,000 


» 
n 


We  may  also  form  some  estimate  of  the  dangers  encountered  by  the  men 
engaged  in  this  work,  from  the  tidings  forwarded  two  months  later  from  St. 
John's,  Newfoundland,  where,  on  June  7th,  1883,  news  was  received  that  thirty 
sealing  schooners  were  immured  in  heavy  ice-fields  in  the  northern  part  of  the 
Gulf  of  St.  Lawrence,  and  fifteen  more  in  ice-fields  north  of  the  Straits  of  Belle 
Isle.  All  these  crews  were  then  reported  to  be  starving.  This  information 
had  been  brought  by  ten  men,  who  had  volunteered  to  drag  a  boat  twenty  miles 
across  the  unbroken  ice* field,  and  had  thence  succeeded  in  reaching  the  shore. 


DAINTY  DISHES.  365 

boats  are  employed  solely  for  this  fishery.  In  olden  days,  when 
cormorant-fishing  was  an  English  sport,  and  at  the  present  time  in 
Holland,  a  ring  or  leathern  strap  is  fastened  round  the  lower  part 
of  the  throat,  and  the  bird  swallows  as  many  fish  as  it  can  catch, 
and,  on  returning  to  its  keeper,  disgorges  them. 

On  some  parts  of  our  own  coast  the  cormorant  is  considered 
rather  good  eating;  a  happy  combination  of  fish  and  fowl.  Its 
fishy  taste,  however,  is  reduced  by  burying  the  bird  in  sand  for 
four-and-twenty  hours,  and  then  skinning  him,  when  he  makes  a 
tolerable  soup. 

The  deep-sea  fishing  here  is  excellent.  White  fish  of  all  sorts 
are  abundant.  There  is  one  poacher,  however,  who  proves  sorely 
annoying  to  the  toiling  fishers.  This  is  the  little  star-fish,  which 
at  once  makes  for  the  lines,  and  eats  the  bait,  and  though  he  pretty 
often  gets  hooked  himself,  as  the  penalty  of  his  indiscretion,  his 
useless  death  gives  small  satisfaction  to  the  men  whose  night's 
labour  has  been  wasted.  Not  content  with  this,  he  destroys  vast 
quantities  of  bait  by  attacking  the  mussel  scalps,  of  which  he 
makes  sad  havoc,  destroying  thousands  of  young  mussels. 

The  inhabitants  of  the  various  islands  have  each  their  peculiar 
notions  as  to  what  fish  ai'e  good  for  food.  Some  will  eat  skate, 
some  eat  dog-fish.  Some  eat  limpets  and  razor-fish,  and,  as  a 
matter  of  course,  those  who  do  not,  despise  those  who  do.  In 
olden  times  certain  Highlanders  used  to  cure  hams  of  the  seal,  and 
I  believe  that  in  the  Orkney  Isles  young  seals  are  still  esteemed  a 
great  delicacy.  Whale  was  also  occasionally  eaten  in  these  isles 
with  certain  herbs, — tolerably  coarse  food,  but  useful  in  the  vic- 
tualling of  ships.  That  which  was  sent  to  bring  over  the  Maid  of 
Norway  is  especially  stated  to  have  had  fifty  pounds  of  whale 
among  her  provisions.  Porpoises  were  also  in  much  repute  at  that 
time ;  and  at  the  coronation  of  Queen  Catherine  of  France,  wife  of 
Henry  V.,  the  bill  of  fare  included  porpoise,  garnished  with 
minnows !  Another  most  dainty  bill  of  fare  is  recorded,  of  swans, 
cranes,  and  sea-guUs,  eaten  with  bread  sweetened  with  honey,  and 
flavoured  with  spices. 

On  one  point,  however,  I  believe  all  agree,  namely,  in  their 


366  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

abhorrence  of  eels,  which  they  look  upon  as  a  sort  of  water-serpent 
To  this  day  the  prejudice  exists,  and  though  large  quantities  of 
great  conger-eels  are  caught  on  the  Argyleshire  coast,  and  elsewhere, 
they  are  all  at  once  despatched  to  London  (mth  very  much  the 
same  feeling  as  a  Mahommedan  servant  provides  an  abhorred  ham 
for  the  infidel  dog,  his  master!)  The  fishers  who  capture  these 
unclean  monsters  would  rather  starve  than  eat  one  themselves, 
regarding  them  as  direct  descendants  of  the  Old  Serpent  of 
Eden. 

If  they  are  such,  we  might  suspect  their  wily  ancestor  of  having 
pursued  his  researches*  in  the  garden  farther  than  we  wot  of,  inas- 
much as  nothing  short  of]  having  tasted  the  life-giving  tree  could 
account  for  the  horrible  vitality  of  the  whole  race ;  a  race  which 
utterly  defies  all  common  modes  of  death,  as  you  may  see  any  day, 
by  turning  out  a  basketful  of  eels,  hours  after  you  believe  them  to 
have  been  thoroughly  killed,— still  the  thrill  of  life  shoots  with 
wave-like  undulation  along  each  fold  of  the  writhing  mass.  Nay, 
you  think  you  have  secured  death  by  severing  the  head  from  the 
body ;  yet  woe  betide  the  incautious  finger  that  dares  to  examine 
that  head  too  closely,  for  the  sharp  white'  teeth  have  lost  none  of 
their  power,  and  can  still  inflict  a  vicious  bite  on  the  rash  intruder. 

Speaking  of  eels,  I  cannot  resist  telling  you  of  tlie  latest  com- 
bination of  the  forms  serpentine  and  satanic.  On  the  occasion  of 
a  fancy  ball,  a  gentleman,  who  shall  be  nameless,  determined  to 
appear  in  the  form  popularly  ascribed  to  the  Prince  of  Evil.  A 
well-known  Jew  supplied  the  desired  dress,  but  it  was  found  that, 
as  in  the  case  of  little  Bo-Peep*s  celebrated  sheep,  the  tail  had  been 
left  behind.     How  to  supply  a  new  one  was  the  question. 

Suddenly  a  brilliant  idea  occurred  to  the  p  >or  tail-less  demon. 
He  repaired  to  the  nearest  umbrella  shop,  where  he  invested  in  the 
strongest,  shiny,  umbrella-skin.  Thence  pa*«sing  on  to  the  fish- 
monger's, he  selected  a  fine  healthy  eel,  in  most  active  condition, 
just  large  enough  to  slip  into  the  umbrella  case,  the  ring  at  the 
further  end  allowing  him  breathing  room.  Tlie  said  cose  bt^ing 
then  attached  to  the  dress,  presented  the  appearance  of  a  mosl 
lively  tail   iu  perpetual  motion,  wriggling  and   writhing; — now 


PREJUDICE  AGAINST  SCALELESS  FISH.  367 

twined  round  the  wearer's  neck,  now  round  his  waist,  his  arm,  his 
leg — now  moving  aimlessly  in  mid-air,  or  darting  suddenly  towards 
some  startled  passer-by.  In  short  it  was  a  complete  success  and 
matter  of  amazement  to  all  beholders,  but  to  none  more  so  than 
to  the  Jewish  owner  of  the  costume,  who  stood  gazing  in  rapt 
admiration,  offering  free  bribes  if  only  this  wonderful  secret  might 
be  revealed  to  him  I 

The  prejudice  against  eating  eels  is  partly  due  to  the  fact  that, 
although  denizens  of  the  sea,  they  are  generally  supposed  (by  men 
wlv>  only  use  their  own  natural  eyes,  and  have  not  brought  power- 
ful microscopes  to  bear  on  the  eel's  fine  coat  of  scaly  armour)  to  be 
devoid  of  scales, — a  form  of  animal  life  which,  to  the  Celt,  was 
particularly  abhorrent. 

This  is  a  curious  point  for  consideration,  inasmuch  as  we  know 
that  the  ancient  Egyptians  prohibited  the  use  of  scaleless  fish  on 
the  ground  of  their  being  unwholesome  ;  and  the  Romans  in  like 
manner  were  forbidden  to  sacrifice  such  to  their  gods.  The  Israel- 
ites, too,  were  commanded  by  the  Levitical  law,  **  Whatsoever  hath 
no  fins,  nor  scales,  in  the  seas  and  in  the  rivers,  of  all  that  moveth 
in  the  waters,  that  shall  be  an  abomination  unto  you"  (Lev. 
xi.  10), 

So  real  is  this  prejudice  on  the  part  of  the  Celt,  that  it  led  to  the 
total  rejection  of  tiirbot,  as  being  unmistakably  scaleless.^  So,  even 
in  the  last  generation,  the  poorest  folk  would  not  receive  these 
despised  dainties  into  their  houses,  and  until  very  recent  years,  all 
the  turbot  taken  even  on  the  coast  of  Fife  and  Aberdeen  were 
thrown  away,  as  there  was  no  sale  for  them,  till  the  Saxon  came 
north,  and  found  that  he  could  rescue  fish,  fit  for  an  alderman's 
feast,  almost  for  the  trouble  of  taking  them  I 

Strange  indeed  it  is  that  such  a  prejudice  as  this  should  have 

'  While  revising  these  pages  for  the  press,  I  notice  the  following  statement 
before  the  Royal  Commission  at  Ness,  Isle  Lewis,  on  June  7th,  1883.  A 
fisher,  speaking  in  the  name  of  the  community,  remarked  that ''  they  often 
caught  turbot  on  their  lines,  bt7T  thbt  used  them  all  fob  bait.  Q. — ^Don't 
you  know  turbot  sell  high  in  London?  A. — ^Yes  ;  but  London  is  far  from 
here.  If  they  had  eel  bait,  and  good  boats  to  allow  them  to  go  pretty  iu 
out,  they  could  get  a  good  deal  of  turbot." 


368  IN   THE  HEBRIDES. 

led  to  the  rejection  of  such  an  immense  supply  of  good  food.  When 
you  consider  that  30  lbs.  is  not  an  uncommon  weight  for  a  turbot, 
and  that  some  are  even  captured  of  more  than  double  this  weight, — 
and  that,  moreover,  they  are  so  prolific  that  one  turbot,  the  roe  of 
which  weighed  5  lbs.  9  ozs. ,  has  been  found  to  contain  no  less  than 
14,311,200  eggs, — it  is  evident  that  it  ought  to  form  a  serious  item 
in  the  general  food-supply,  as  indeed  it  does  further  north,  where  a 
recent  report  from  the  coast  of  Jutland  tells  of  the  capture  of 
240,000  turbot,  weighing  on  an  average  upwards  of  1  lb.  each. 

Our  Scotch  fishers  have  learnt  wisdom  now,  so  far  as  supplying 
the  market  is  concerned,  but  the  would-be  purchasers  must  remem- 
ber to  ask  for ''  Koden  Fluke  ''if  he  is  on  the  east  coast,  as  true 
turbot  are  known  only  by  that  name.  Should  he  ask  for  turbot,  he 
would  be  served  with  halibut,  a  very  coarse  fish  of  the  same  family, 
which  occasionally  attains  an  enormous  size.  One  was  captured  at 
Wick  a  few  years  ago  which  weighed  231  lbs.,  and  measured  7  feet 
1  inch  in  length  !  Another,  caught  on  the  Northumbrian  coast, 
weighed  294  lbs. !  ^ 

Doubtless  the  lack  of  scales  was  the  true  reason  why  many  of 
the  Islanders  would  on  no  account  eat  seal,  dog-fish,  or  porpoise. 

That  some  very  marked  prejudice  with  regard  to  fish  existed 
among  our  ancestors,  is  evident  from  the  assertion  of  an  ancient 
author  2  that  the  people  of  Caledonia  never  ate  fish. 

It  certainly  is  remarkable  that  in  all  Ossian's  songs  of  the  chase, 
when  he  skims  over  flood  and  field,  rivers  and  seas,  no  allusion 
whatever  is  made  to  the  catching  of  fish.  Yet  we  find  these,  rudely 
carved  on  many  holy  stones,  together  with  the  mystic  divining- 
mirror,  which  the  sea-faring  folk  to  this  day  declare  to  be  always 
seen  in  the  hands  of  mermaids.  Their  very  realistic  description  of 
these  fishy  maidens  and  mermen  answer  precisely  to  the  old 
accounts  of  the  fish  god  and  goddess,  Dagon  and  Derceto,  which 

^  These,  however,  are  pigmi&<i,  compared  with  the  halibut  of  America, 
which  have  been  captured,  weighing  from  400  to  600  lbs  !  One  weighing  600 
lbs.  was  caught  off  Portland.  Canada  sent  one  weighing  475  lbs*  to  the  London 
**  International  Fisheries  Exhibition,''  preserved  in  a  plate-glass  refrigerator. 

*  Dion  Cassias. 


CELTIC  OBJECTION  TO  PIGS  AND  POULTRY.  369 

were  worshipped  by  the  Syrians  and  PhoBnicians,  who,  for  their 
sakes,  would  eat  no  fish. 

It  certainly  is  very  strange  still  to  find  among  the  people  of  these 
Isles  traces  of  religious  objection  to  the  use  of  certain  meat^, — and 
then  to  note  the  identical  prejudice  in  full  force  in  far-distant  lands. 

To  begin  with, — ^all  the  creatures  prohibited  as  unclean  by  the 
Iievitical  law  were  likewise  abhorrent  to  the  Celt,  and  though,  in 
these  modern,  degenerate  days,  he  may  occasionally  (not  without 
serious  qualms)  be  induced  to  eat  hare  or  pig,  he  undoubtedly  looks 
on  both  with  repugnance.  But  of  the  birds  pronounced  unclean, 
none  is  ever  eaten,  save  an  occasional  cormorant. 

But  Celtic  prejudice  goes  beyond  the  prohibitions  of  the  Levitical 
law.  Till  very  recent  yeara,  it  extended  to  the  goose  and  other 
poultry ;  cocks,  and  occasionally  hens,  were  reserved  for  sacrifice ;  but 
apparently  here,  as  in  many  other  countries,  the  goose  was  deemed 
too  sacred  for  food — hence,  doubtless,  we  find  it  carved  on  sacred 
stones,  beside  the  sun-symbols. 

A  very  curious  point  in  connection  with  the  meati  deemed  clean 
or  unclean,  is  the  fact  that  while  domestic  pork  was  held  in  abhor- 
rence, the  flesh  of  the  wild  boar  was  much  esteemed.^  In  all  old 
Gaelic  lore  the  mighty  hunters  are  described  as  feasting  on  the  wild 
boars  they  have  slain  in  the  chase — as  when  Fingal  and  his  son 
Ossian,  and  their  band  of  heroes,  devoured  the  boar  Scrymmer. 

I  am  not  sure  whether  the  Celtic  objection  to  scaleless  fish 
extends  to  flounders.  Probably  it  does,  as  some  of  the  fishers  on 
the  west  coast  believe  the  flounder  (or,  as  they  call  it,  fluke)  to  be 
a  young  turbot. 

Drawing  the  salmon  nets  in  the  early  morning  was  always  a 
point  of  attraction  to  me.  I  was  generally  astir  by  4  a.m. — the 
loveliest  hour  of  a  summer  morning — and  the  sailor  who  had  been 
on  yatch  all  night  was  glad  enough  to  give  me  my  lesson  in  rowing 

^  The  same  distinction  is  drawn  by  the  modem  Hindoo,  who,  while  abhor- 
ring the  domestic  pi^^,  does  not  object  to  feast  on  wild  boar.  The  Hindoo 
also  holds  poultry  in  religious  abhorrence,  and  will  on  no  account  taste  it,  or 
touch  it.  The  poultry-market  of  India  is  therefore  supplied  either  by 
Mahommedans,  or  by  men  too  degraded  to  have  any  caste. 

D  B 


370  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

till  it  was  time  to  return  and  awaken  the  crew  at  6  a.m.  So  to  the 
salmon  nets  I  generally  made  my  way,  and  a  very  exciting  moment 
it  is  when  the  nets  are  hauled  in — sometimes  with  a  prize  of  bonnie 
silvery  Fish — which  of  course  means  salmon  exclusively,  for  to  apply 
that  sacred  word  to  any  less  noble  species  would  mark  you  ignorant 
indeed.  I'd  like  to  see  old  Lauchlan*s  face  if  you  used  it  with 
reference  to  the  lean,  dark,  long-nosed  article  he  has  just  thrown 
back  into  the  river.  "  Fish !  indeed  I  Ou  !  it  wasna  a  Fish !  It 
was  no-but  a  kelt !  ** 

But  fish  or  no  fish,  the  nets  are  safe  to  draw  up  some  curious 
treasures  ^  of  the  deep.  Creatures  such  as  you  will  see  nowhere 
else,  for  they  are  so  useless,  that  they  are  at  once  thrown  back  to 
Mother  Ocean.  Sea  hedgehogs,  and  sea-urchins,  and  sea-hens, 
and  queer  beasts  all  head  and  fins,  and  young  sea-serpents,  and  all 
manner  of  odd  monsters.  The  gulls  well  know  their  chance  of 
securing  these  prizes,  and  always  follow  the  drawing  of  the  nets  ; 
black-headed  gulls,  and  kitti wakes,  and  graceful  sea-swallows  with 
their  sharp  wings  and  forked  tails,  hover  expectantly  around,  with 
wild,  musical  cries.  Gradually  the  line  of  floating  corks  narrows, 
and,  as  the  net  is  drawn  in,  great  agitation  prevails  among  the 
captives,  who  flop  about,  and  tumble  over  and  over  in  dire  dismay. 
Now  a  great  fin  appears,  now  a  tail,  now  a  nose,  and  quick  flashes 
of  silver  tell  what  treasures  will  reward  the  fisher's  toil. 

Then,  as  the  meshy  prison  is  hauled  in,  an  eager  discussion  goes 
on  in  Gaelic,  and  the  silvery  Fish  are  laid  aside  with  honour  due. 
After  that  their  fellow-prisoners  are  sorted.  White  fish  of  all  sorts 
— flounders,  saithe,  lythe,  rock-codlings,  skate,  cuddies,  which  are 
young  lythe,  mackerel,  and  many  another  are  judged  worthy  of 
human  consumption,  and  the  fishers  teach  us  to  call  them  by  names 
unknown  to  ichthyologists,  sometimes,  perhaps,  with  a  sly  laugh  at 
our  ignorance.  We  point  out  something  that  we  mistake  for  a 
haddock,  and  the  skipper  gravely  says,  "  Na,  it  isna  a  haddock. 

I'm  thinking  it  will  be" a  pause  reflective,  so  long  that  we 

wonder  what  is  coming  next.  .  .  .  **  Weel,  lilcely  it  will  be — the 
son  of  a  cod — or  it  may  be  the  daughter  !  I  " 

But  it  is  by  no  means  all  fish  that  comes  to  the  net,  for,  as  I 


DENIZENS  OF  THE  DEEP.  37 1 

before  said,  all  the  quaintest,  and,  to  yon  or  me,  the  most  interest- 
ing sea  creatures,  are  thrown  away  with  infinite  contempt,  when 
they  give  a  shake  and  a  wriggle,  and  dive  into  their  beloved  depths 
with  all  speed,  provided  they  can  escape  the  rapid  swoop  of  rapa- 
cious, hungry-eyed  gulls,  who  watch  vigilantly  over  the  nets,  hoping 
for  their  share  of  the  spoil. 

Their  reflections  on  the  tenderness  of  the  lords  of  the  creation 
are  probably  highly  subversive  of  discipline  in  our  sea  realms ;  for 
the  fishers  are  not  tender  in  their  handling,  and  generally  administer 
such  a  parting  blow  on  the  head  as  ought  to  kill  them,  but  unfor- 
tunately does  not  do  so ;  so  they  sink  down  **  through  their  dim  water 
world  "  with  eyes  battered,  and  bruised  heads — perhaps,  if  they  are 
big  enough,  with  a  gash  from  a  clip  in  their  side,  and  all  this, 
because  they  are  just  what  Heaven  made  them ;  and  enjoy  dining 
off  their  lesser  fellow-creatures  just  as  much  as  we  do  ourselves. 

One  of  the  foes  most  hated  by  the  fisher  folk,  is  the  dog-fish, 
with  its  sharp  shark-like  teeth  and  rough  skin,  like  coarse  sand- 
paper. It  generally  gets  an  extra  blow,  and  wriggles  away  very 
sorely  and  sadly  to  its  rock  home.  In  some  of  the  outermost  isles, 
even  this  little  shark  is  made  available  for  human  food,  as  it  also  is 
in  West  Cornwall,  where  the  species  known  as  rough-hoimd  is 
made  into  morghi  soup ;  morghi  being  an  ancient  British  word 
meaning  sea-dog.  (To  an  old  Indian  it  might  be  suggestive  of 
chicken-broth  !) 

Another  creature  which  receives  small  pity  from  the  fishers  is 
known  as  the  sea-pig.  He  is  armed  with  sharp  prickles  down  the 
back  which  make  him  rather  an  unpleasant  customer. 

Crabs  too  of  all  sorts  and  kinds  come  in,  clinging  to  their  dinner 
of  fine  large  half-eaten  fish,  of  which  they  make  very  shoii 
work ;  and  once  in  the  boat,  how  they  do  run  from  side  to  side 
giving  each  of  their  companions  in  misery  a  vicious  nip  as  they 
pass ! 

Then  there  was  a  very  odd  fish,  with  a  huge  head  and  gaping 
jaws,  in  wonderful  disproportion  to  his  small  lean  body.  He 
was  like  a  Brobdingnagian  species  of  the  little  miller's  thumb  of 
our  fresh- water  streams;  or  still  more  like  the  sting-fish,  which, 

B  B  2 


872  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

however,  is  said  only  to  grow  four  or  five  inches  long,  whereas  this 
creature  was  fully  eighteen. 

One  queer  animal  that  we  occasionally  caught  was  the  lump-fish  , 
a  hideous,  fatty  creature,  singularly  grotesque  in  form.  It  is  covered 
all  over  with  rows  of  hard,  rough  lumps  ;  and  on  its  nnder-side  is  a 
hard,  lumpy  mass,  whence  it  derives  its  name.  Its  flesh  is  soft  and 
oily  ;  hence  it  is  esteemed  one  of  the  dainties  of  Greenland,  and 
such  cold,  oiMoving  regions.  In  this  country  we  resign  the  deli- 
cious nior.'^el  to  the  seals,  who  arc  said  to  he  marvellously  expert  in 
flaying  their  rough- skinned  prize,  just  as  you  would  do  a  fine  ripe 
peach,  and  swallow  it  with  equal  enjoyment. 

It  seems  that  this  fish,  in  the  course  of  his  little  life,  pisses 
through  changes  more  numerous  and  quite  as  remarkable  as  the 
development  of  frog's  spawn  into  tadpoles  and  full-grown  frogs. 
When  first  he  escapes  from  his  tiny  egg,  he  strongly  resembles  the 
said  tadpole,  with  large  head  and  slim  body.  The  next  transforma- 
tion shows  him  still  large-headed  and  smooth-skinned,  and  duly 
provided  with  fins.  In  his  last  stage  he  becomes  the  bloated 
creature  I  describeil,  with  head  and  fins  alike  buried  in  fat,  and  his 
whole  body  covered  with  coarse,  rough  tubercles.  The  fishers,  who 
are  apt  to  be  somewhat  hazy  in  their  notions  as'  to  the  changes 
undergone  by  various  creatures,  call  this  ludicrous  fish  a  sea-hen ; 
and  they  firmly  believe  it  to  be  either  the  parent  or  child  of  the 
common  jelly-fish — a  statement  which  I  was  not  in  a  position  to 
disprove,  so  listened  with  polite,  if  incredulous,  attention. 

I  did  not  then  know  through  what  strange  and  beautiful  trans- 
formations some  of  these  exquisite  meduscB  (sea-butterfiies  we  might 
call  them)  pass  in  the  course  of  their  short  summer-life.^  How, 
when  the  autumn  days  draw  on,  and  the  mother  jelly-fish  knows 
that  the  time  has  come  when  she  must  melt  away,  and  lose  herself 
in  ocean-foam,  she  lays  thousands  of  tiny  eggs,  each  covered  with 
invisible  hairs —movable  hairs  like  the  spines  of  the  sea-urchin — 
whereby  the  little  living  eggs  paddle  their  way  to  some  safe  hiding- 
places  in  the  crannies  of  the  rock,  and  there  moor  themselves. 

^  Those  which  arc  scientifically  distin^shed  as  Lucemarida,  those  "  of  the 
hidden  eye,''  their  eyes  being  protected  by  a  sort  of  hood. 


STRANGE  TRANSFORMATIONS.  373 

Thus  anchored,  and  secure  from  winter  storms,  they  wait  to  see  what 
will  happen  next 

Soon  from  each  egg  there  grows  a  tiny  stem,  and  from  it  spring 
delicate  branches,  and  every  branch  is  covered  with  minute  cups, 
edged  with  little  dainty  arms — living  arms,  that  float  on  every  side. 
And  when  spring  changes  to  summer,  each  graceful  flower-like  cup 
develops  a  new  life,  and  buds  and  blossoms,  and  each  fairy  blossom 
proves  to  be  a  living  rose, — a  tiny  jelly-fish,  with  thousands  of 
fringe- like  fingers ;  and  the  little  creature  frees  itself  from  the  stem, 
and  floats  away  in  the  warm  summer  sea  to  commence  its  own  life 
of  gladness  and  independence. 

The  fishers  will  tell  you  of  many  a  strange  transformation,  if  you 
care  to  listen.  Many  of  them  still  believe  that  the  barnacles  which 
cluster  on  old  ships,  or  any  old  wood,  are  really  the  young  of  the 
barnacle  goose — a  faith  by  no  means  confined  to  the  Isles.  Even 
in  France  this  legend  of  a  marine  birth  has  led  to  this  goose  being 
eaten  on  fast  days,  though  so  foul  a  fish  has  met  with  some  opposi- 
tion from  ecclesiastical  authorities.  So  lat«  as  the  twelfth  century, 
we  find  a  great  Welsh  divine^  warning  the  priests  of  Ireland  against 
such  Lenten  fare.  For  though  he  himself  evidently  fully  believes 
the  fable,  he  declares  that  fowl  born  of  fish  is  no  more  fit  food 
for  fast  days,  than  might  be  '*a  leg  of  Adam,''  who  was  not  bom  of 
flesh  either. 

A  trace  of  this  curious  discovery  in  natural  history,  is  retained  in 
the  scientific  name  which  describes  the  ship  barnacle  as  the  Anati- 
ffira^  or  goose-bearer.  The  account  of  its  transformation  into  a  great 
winged  fowl  is  given  most  circumstantially  by  divers  old  writers, 
together  with  minute  illustrations  of  the  creature  in  its  various 
stages.  Thus  Gerard  writes,  in  1636  :  ''  What  our  eyes  have  seen 
and  hands  have  touched  we  shall  declare."  And  he  goes  on  to  tell 
Itow,  on  various  old  timbers  cast  up  by  the  sea,  is  found  ''a 
certaine  froth,  which  in  time  brecdeth  into  certaine  shells,  whence 
onimeth  the  shape  and  form  of  a  bird.  When  it  is  perfectly 
formed,  the  shell  gapeth  open,  and  the  first  thing  that  appeareth 
ia  the  aforesaid  lace  or  string ;  next  come  the  legs  of  the  bird 
^  Giraldus  Cambrensis,  Archdeacon  of  St.  Pavid's,  born  114t>. 


374  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

hanging  oufc,  and  as  it  groweth  greater,  it  opejtieth  the  shell  by 
degrees,  till  at  length  it  is  all  come  forth,  and  hangeth  only  by  the 
bill.  In  short  space  after,  it  cometh  to  full  maturitie,  and  falleth 
into  the  sea,  where  it  gatheieth  feathers  and  groweth  to  a  fowle." 

Various  other  learned  ornithologists  have  left  us  the  most  minute 
description  of  the  gradual  development  of  this  long-legged  shell  fish, 
and  the  growth  of  its  feathers,  till  it  becometh  a  fowl  bigger  than  a 
mallard.  Even  Southey  speaks  of  *'  The  barnacle,  a  bird  breeding 
upon  old  ships."  Not  content  with  this  simple  transition  from  fish 
to  fowl,  divers  of  our  most  learned  forefathers  taught  (and  the 
Yulg'ir,  of  course,  believed)  that  the  barnacles  themselves  were  indeed 
the  blossoms  of  the  old  wood  on  which  they  were  found  clustering 
so  abundantly. 

One  renowned  scholar  ^  says  :  "  We  find  trees  in  Scotland  which 
produce  a  fruit  enveloped  in  leaves,  and  when  it  drops  into  the 
water  at  a  suitable  time,  it  takes  life,  and  is  turned  into  a  live  bird, 
which  they  call  a  tree-bird  I "  Of  tlus  curious  tree  he  gives  a  faith- 
ful picture,  with  leaves  and  blossoms,  and  half-ripe  fruit,  whence 
issues  forth  the  head  of  the  young  duck,  while  fully-developed  birds 
swim  in  the  pool  below. 

Another  celebrated  ornithologist  ^  favours  us  with  a  yet  more 
elaborate  picture  of  the  duck-bearing  tree,  whereon  each  fruit  is 
a  carefully-drawn  barnacle,  whence  newly-hatched  ducks  fall  into 
the  water,  and  there  joyously  disport  themselves.  When  such 
strange  fables  were  gravely  discussed  by  the  naturalists  of  the  day, 
we  need  scarcely  wonder  to  find  traces  of  the  same  folly  among  the 
ignorant  fishers.  As  to  the  loose  reasoning  which  admitted  this 
goose  to  the  rank  of  Lenten  fare,  it  became  weaker  still  in  the  case 
of  the  otter,  which  was  also  eaten  on  the  lesser  fast  days,  its  flesh 
being  so  fishy  as  to  allow  room  for  the  quibble. 

A  quaint  trace  of  the  old  Celtic  belief  in  some  forms  of  trans- 
migration, long  lingered  in  some  of  these  isles,  where  it  was  fully 
believed  that  those  who  were  drowned  assumed  the  form  of  seals, 
and  disported  themselves  joyously  in  ocean  depths,  or  else  passed 
onward  to  "  the  realm  beneath  the  waves  *' — a  world  with  an  atroo- 

>  Sebastian  Munater  on  Cosmography.  '  Aldxovandos. 


HUfiCAN  SEALS  AND  SWANS,  375 

sphere  like  our  own,  where  Vikingr,  and  all  brave  pirates,  sailors, 
and  fisher-fulk,  dwelt  in  a  beautiful  world,  in  pearl  and  coral  caved 
— a  world  over  which  the  blue  sea  arched,  as  the  blue  heaven  does 
above  this  earth  ;  and  it  was  only  when  a  craving  for  old  ocean,  or 
for  mother  earth,  came  over  these  denizens  of  that  mysterious  land, 
that  they  needed  to  wear  their  seal-skin  coats  to  enable  them  to 
return  to  the  upper  world. 

Once  a  month  they  were  allowed  to  lay  aside  their  seal-skin 
raiment,  and,  resuming  mortal  form,  might  dance  and  sing  all  night 
upon  the  shore ;  but,  ere  the  sun  rose,  they  must  resume  their 
amphibious  character,  and  plunge  once  more  into  the  green  wave?. 
Strange  legends  were  told  of  how  venturesome  mortals  had  found 
and  stolen  the  seal-skins  as  they  lay  on  the  rocks,  and  had  thus 
won  back  fair  wives  and  friends  from  their  marine  bondage. 

It  is  thus  that  the  MacPhees  of  Isle  Colonsay  are  descended 
from  a  drowned  maiden,  whose  seal-skin  the  chief  found  one  day 
upon  a  rock.  When  the  weeping  damsel  came  to  search  for  her 
lost  raiment,  he  shrouded  her  in  his  plaid,  and  rowed  her  ashore  to 
his  castle,  when  she  became  his  wife.  Sometimes,  however,  the 
brides  thus  captured  found  their  seal-skins  again  among  their  lords' 
treasures,  and,  having  tried  them  on,  could  not  resist  plunging  once 
more  into  the  sea,  whence  they  never  returned. 

Another  form  of  this  myth  tells  how  men  and  women  were 
transformed  into  wild  swans.  Such  is  the  story  of  the  Children  of 
Lir,  told  by  Campbell  of  Islay,  which  records  how  an  ill- woman 
worked  spells  whereby  two  brothers  and  a  sister  were  condemned 
to  assume  this  form,  and  haunt  the  Mull  of  Cantyre.  There  they 
sang  plaintive  Gaelic  laments,  but  those  who  heard  them  sa\d  it  was 
the  cry  of  the  wild  swans. 

At  length  they  flew  to  an  Irish  lake/where  a  holy  man  had  made 
his  cell.  The  swans  drew  near,  and  took  part  in  the  service,  and 
the  saint  espied  gold  chains  around  their  necks,  and  knew  that  they 
were  human  beings  bewitched.  So  St.  Patrick  himself  was  sum- 
moned to  their  aid,  and  the  spell  was  broken,  and  the  wild  swans 
resumed  their  human  form. 

Akin  to  this  story  is  one  frpm  Islay,  which  tells  lio\v  a. man  9a\i[ 


87 G  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

a  flight  of  swans  alight,  and  they  cast  off  their  feather  robes,  and 
became  beautiful  women.  He  stole  a  swan-skin  (a  codial^  as  the 
disguise  is  called),  and  when  the  owner  returned,  she  sought  for  it 
in  vain,  and  her  companions  flew  away,  and  she  was  left  alone.  So 
she  wedded  the  mortal,  and  became  the  mother  of  many  children. 
After  some  years,  the  bairns  found  an  old  swan's  skin  hidden  in  an 
out-house,  and  showed  it  to  their  mother.  She  wept  bitterly,  but 
she  put  on  the  skin,  and  stretched  the  white  wings  and  flew  far 
away  from  her  wondering  little  ones. 

But  when  many  days  had  gone  by,  a  flight  of  wild  swans  came 
to  the  house,  bearing  a  swan's  skin  for  the  father,  and  he  too  was 
transformed  into  a  white  swan  and  flew  away.  Centuries  elapsed^ 
and  then  once  more  he  returned  to  Islay,  but  it  seemed  to  him  as 
though  he  had  only  been  absont  for  a  night. 

The  transformation  myth  has  its  place  in  the  legend  of  Os<ian's 
birth,  for  by  magic  his  mother  had  been  changed  into  a  hind,  and 
when  her  son  was  born,  her  deer's  instinct  made  her  lick  his  brow, 
and  so  deer's  hair  grew  on  the  child's  temple.  Then  the  woman- 
nature  prevailed,  and  she  ceased  licking  the  child ;  so  he  grew  up 
human,  with  only  a  hair-spot  on  his  temple. 

The  existence  of  mermen  and  mermaids  is  a  matter  of  implicit 
credence.  There  are  men  and  women  now  living  on  our  coasts  who 
believe  in  these  curious  compounds  as  truly  as  did  the  Syrians  and 
Phoenicians. 

The  story  goes,  that  these  maidens  and  men  of  the  sea  possess 
a  magic  belt,  without  which  they  cease  to  be  amphibiuus.  Any 
one  finding  this  treasure  could  keep  the  owner  captive  on  the  dry 
land  for  so  long  as  he  should  please.  There  is  a  family  now  living 
at  Hilton  of  Cadboll,  in  the  parish  of  Fern,  Easter  Hoss,  who  claim 
descent  from  a  merman,  whose  belt  a  human  girl  had  stolen. 

At  Tarbert,  in  Easter  Ross,  lives  another  family,  who  believe  that 
wind  and  tempest  can  never  harm  their  boat;  for  their  father, 
James  Mdr  (who  is  still  living  to  tell  the  tale),  once  found  a  mer- 
maid's belt,  and  would  on  no  account  restore  it  to  her  till  she 
promised  that  none  of  his  family  should  ever  be  drowned — a 
promise  which  she  has  faithfully  kept. 


LITTLE  FORAOEKS.  377 

What  witli  fantastic  legends,  and  records  of  Btrange  old  cuEtonia, 
•nd  tlie  daily  dcli^'ht  of  exploring  beautiful  ecenes, — to  say  nothing 
of  the  charm  of  a  prolonged  spell  of  blessed  aumnier  weather  (some- 
what a  rare  boon  beneath  these  often  keeping  skies),  the  days 
glided  by  far  too  quickly. 


We  would  fain  have  prolonged  out  cruise,  but  that  tyrant  of  the 
age,  the  post,  recalled  us  once  more  to  Uig,  where  all  was  calm  and 
peaceful  aa  usual.  Tliere  were  the  same  picturesque  lassies,  whose 
one  ahort  "  coatie  "  and  bare  legs  vere  seen  running  along  the  wet 
shore,  while  head  and  shoulders  were  last  beneath  the  great  creel, 
overflowing  with  such  a  pile  of  green  grasn,  and  pink  clover,  with 
largo  white  hemlocks  and  daisies,  as  seomeil  only  a  huge  nosegay, 
with  a  sickle  stuck  in  the  middle  of  it. 


378  IN   THE  HEBRIDES. 

If  you  speak  to  one  of  these  little  foragers,  a  bright  face  will 
glance  up  from  under  a  scarlet  ^handkerchief — ^but  she  will  not 
attempt  to  answer,  for  though  the  lassies,  as  well  as  the  lads,«re 
taught  in  English  at  the  ''schule,*'  and  a  few  can  read  it  pretty 
well,  hardly  one  can  translate  a  sentence,  or  understand  the  simplest 
remark  ;  and  the  girls,  living  in  Gaelic  homes,  do  not  find  that  use 
for  English  which  induces  a  few  of  their  brothers  to  pick  it  up.^ 

These  were  our  last  days  in  the  sunny  bay ;  and  they  recall 
pleasant  memories  of  rowing  and  fishing — and  of  long  beautiful 
evenings  when  ofttimes  we  wandered  up  to  some  green  headland, 
thence  looking  across  the  calm  sea  to  the  distant  isles,  all  wrapt  in 
that  deep  peace  which  specially  belongs  to  the  gloaming — the  hour 

**  When  sweet  and  slumbVous  melodies  o'er  land  and  water  creep. 
As  Nature  sits  with  half -shut  eyes,  singing  herself  to  sleep." 

Thence  returning  to  the  little  lodge,  we  skirted  fields  of  tall 
brown  rye  grass  and  sweet  clover,  the  chosen  home  of  the  corn- 
crake, who,  through  all  the  dewy  night,  watches'  among  the  long 
grasses,  guarding  the  nest  where  sleep  her  brood  of  quaint,  black, 
long-legged  little  ones,  and  uttering  her  harsh,  grating  cry — a  cry 
jarring  to  unfamiliar  ears,  but  to  others  very  dear  through  associa> 
tion  with  lovely  summer  nights  and  country  homes. 

'  See  page  Ul. 


A  0L003iY  DAY.  379 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

OIL  ON   THB  WATERS. 

"  With  a  low  siWer-tons^ed  monotony 
The  little  billows  whisper  as  they  fall ; 
Calm  is  the  forehead  of  the  outer  sea. 
As  though  it  would  not  reawake  at  alL 

"  But  yestermom,  like  mountiuns  earthquake-shaken, 
The  waters  swayed  against  the  dawning  light, 
And  now  they  lie,  like  sorrows  overtaken 
By  weary  sleep,  that  cannot  wait  for  night." 

Grey  Rain— Portree  Harbour — Becalmed— Whistling  for  a  Wind— Oil  on 
the  Waters— St.  Kilda  Puddings— Shetland  Cods'  Livers— Oily  Fish- 
Fishermen  of  many  Lands — Wrecks  averted  by  use  of  Oil — Mr.  Shields 
at  Peterhead — Application  of  Oil  to  Life>buoys — Wreck  Register. 

OcH  hone !  Och  hone !  to  think  that  such  a  change  could  have  passed 
o'er  the  spirit  of  our  dream.  Here  we  are  once  again  in  beautiful 
Loch  Staffin*  But  can  it  be  that  this  is  indeed  the  fairy  bay  in 
which,  so  few  days  ago,  we  took  such  exceeding  delight)  Now 
the  pattering  rain  falls  with  dull  plash  on  the  sullen  waves ;  a 
heavy  ground-swell  rolls  us  to  and  fro,  and  the  cold  epray  dashes 
over  us ;  the  bitter  wind  whistles  through  the  rigging,  or  blows  in 
hollow  gusts,  echoing  among  the  crags ;  on  every  side  the  lowering 
sky  is  black  with  gathering  storm ;  the  slippery,  black  rocks  are 
flecked  with  salt  sea-foam,  and  there  is  no  beauty  in  the  dripping 
sea-weed,  or  the  wet  sands,  or  the>  flapping  sails  of  the  fishers'  boats- 
— with  their  rich  brown  changed  to  dirty  black. 


382  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

each  white  plume  is  reflected ;  the  brightest  spots  on  the  broad 
plain  of  gleaming  light. 

Tliis  fine  sea-loch  divides  itself  into  an  inner  and  an  outer 
harbour,  perfectly  Lmd-locked.  The  former  is  still  known  to  the 
older  fishers  as  Loch  Columbkille,  being  one  of  the  spots  specially 
dedicated  to  St.  Columb  i,  who  was  patron  saint  of  half  of  Skye, 
and  many  neighbouring  isles.  The  other  half  was  the  property  of 
that  St.  Maelruhba  to  whom,  as  we  have  seen,  were  offered  sucli 
strange  sacrifices.^  At  the  further  end  of  the  loch,  close  to  the 
sheritfs  house,  is  a  small  rocky  islet,  where  a  few  fragments  of 
building,  and  traces  of  old  graves  are  all  that  now  remain  to  mark 
the  spot  where  once  stood  the  oldest  monastic  building  in  Scotland ; 
so,  at  least,  say  certain  of  our  wisest  antiquarians. 

Early  and  late  we  rowed  about  on  those  calm  waters ;  sometimes 
landing  in  some  little  creek,  where  the  great  rocks  sheltered  us  from 
the  burning  sun,  and  the  cool  wavelets,  rippling  over  white  sand, 
whispered  an  irresistible  invitation  to  bathe.  Then,  wandering 
along  the  shore,  some  heathery  knoll  would  tempt  us  to  linger  amid 
its  fragrant  purple  till  the  mellowing  evening  light  called  us  back 
to  our  floating  home. 

At  last  we  made  sure  of  a  gale,  and  determined  to  sail  next 
morning.  So  at  3  a.m.  I  went  off  to  the  head  of  the  bay  to  get  a 
final  sketch  of  the  Storr ;  and  returned,  of  course,  to  find  the 
breeze  more  sleepy  than  ever.  Next  day  we  determined  we  woM 
get  under  weigh ;  so  we  contrived  to  get  to  the  mouth  of  the  harbour, 
and  there  lay  immovable  till  the  men  got  into  the  boat,  and,  rowing 
with  all  their  might,  contrived  to  tug  us  back. 

You  see  our  sailors  were  above  the  common  world-wide  practice 
of  whistling  for  the  win<l,  as  their  brethren  the  fisher-folk  do  to 
this  day  in  most  real  earnest.^  Hugh  Miller  tells  us  how,  often, 
when  he  has  been  sailing  with  the  Cromarty  fishermen  in  calm 
weather,  he  has  watched  them  with  faces  anxiously  turned  in  the 
direction  whence  they  expect  the  breeze,  and  earnestly  invoking  the 
wind  in  a  shrill,  tremulous  whistling.     He  says  that  one  evening 

»  See  Chapter  VI. 

*  And  as  I  have  heard  done  by  sundry  Pacific  Islanders. 


USE  OF  BEA-GULL  OIL  IN   ST.  KILDA.  383 

when  it  was  blowing  hard,  be  commenced  whistling  a  careless 
tune,  whereupon  one  of  the  men  instantly  silenced  him,  saying, 
"  Whist,  whist,  lad  !  we  hae  mair  nor  eneugh  wind  already."  He 
traces  this  s\iperstition  back  to  the  old  days  of  mythology,  when' 
each  spirit  of  air  or  earth  or  water  must  be  invoked  in  its  own 
language  and  in  its  own  manner. 

He  quotes  another  instance  of  this  conciliatory  dealing  with  the 
clemonts,  when,  in  the  case  of  a  rising  storm,  one  of  the  fishers 
used  to  be  told  off  to  sit  astern,  and  continually  move  his  hand  to 
and  fro  over  the  waves,  as  though  making  mesmeric  posses,  to  soothe 
the  spirit  of  the  storm. 

Sometimes  the  fiery  Highlanders  opposed  wrath  to  wrath ;  and 
there  is  one  angry  tide  always  chafing  and  fretting  off  the  coast  of 
Mull,  which  is  called  the  ''Men  of  Lochaber,"  because,  having 
occasion  to  cross  over  to  Mull,  the  contrast  of  these  waves  with  their 
quieter  waters  amazed  and  angered  them  to  such  a  pitch  that  they 
drew  their  dirks  and  stabbed  the  waves ! 

The  men  of  St.  Kilda  came  far  nearer  to  a  practical  dealing  with 
the  difficulty,  when  they  discovered  for  themselves  the  efficacy  of 
"  pouring  oil  upon  troubled  waters,"  a  piece  of  wisdom  with  which, 
-in  its  metaphorical  sense,  we  have  all  our  lives  been  familiar,  though 
we  have  hitherto  been  so  slow  to  apply  it  to  practical,  everyday  use, 
on  stormy  seas.  (By  the  way,  how  strange  it  is  that  no  one  should 
yet  have  been  able  to  trace  to  its  source  this  proverbial  saying.  I 
have  heard  many  persons  confidently  assert  it  to  be  a  quotation  from 
the  Hebrew  Scriptures !) 

To  St.  Kilda  apparently  belongs  the  honour  of  having  been  the 
first  British  island  to  apply  the  discovery  to  daily  life.  It  seems 
to  have  occurred  to  some  reflecting  islander  that  the  oil,  so  abund- 
antly be^<)towed  on  all  sea-birds,  might  be  somehow  specially  adapted 
to  the  requirements  of  the  beautiful  white- winged  creatures  to 
whom  wind  and  wave  are  alike  ministers  of  delight.  So  the 
thought  of  carrying  sea-gull  oil  to  sea  took  form,  and  the  fishers 
made  puddings  of  the  fat  of  sea-fowls,  and  fastened  them  astern  of 
their  "  cobles"  to  hinder  the  waves  from  breaking. 

Away  to  the  north-east,  their  neighbours  in  the  Shetland  Isles 


384  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

likewise  found  means  to  apply  the  lesson  they  had  learnt  from 
noting  the  smooth  surface  of  the  water,  which  invariably  betrays 
the  spot  where  a  seal  chances  to  be  feasting,  and  they  had  remarked 
that  the  sea  was  most  glassy  when  the  victim  was  a  specially  oil- 
yielding  fish,  such  as  cod  or  ling.  So  familiar  is  this  eflfect,  that  the 
Shetlanders  have  a  special  and  singularly  descriptive  word  to  express 
it,  namely,  "  lioom."  If  you  have  ever  noticed  the  appearance  of 
the  sea  in  a  dead  calm,  you  will  at  once  perceive  how  the  very 
sound  of  this  word  suggests  the  oil-like  smoothness  of  surface. 
.  The  hardy  Shetland  men  are  a  race  of  bold  fishers,  and  seek  their 
harvest  far  away  in  the  deep  sea,  sometimes  rowing  forty  or  fifty 
miles  ere  they  reach  their  fishing-ground,  in  boats  so  small  an3  light 
that  a  good  haul  soon  overweights  them.  Yet  in  these  they  face 
the  fiercest  storms  and  most  treacherous  currents.  The  worst 
dangers  await  them  as  they  near  home,  for  there  are  certain  points 
where  the  currents  meet,  and  headlands,  off  which  the  sea  is  always 
tempestuous,  while,  in  the  straits  between  the  islands,  the  tide 
rushes  in  an  impetuous  flood,  more  like  a  raging  river  than  like  a 
well-regulated  ebb  and  flow.  However  calm  may  be  the  outer  sea, 
these  headlong  sea-rivers  are  always  tumultuous,  breaking  in  crested 
billows,  and  marking  their  course  by  a  pathway  of  foam  extending 
far  out  to  sea. 

Even  in  calm  weather  it  is  rarely  considered  safe  to  cross  these 
currents  at  high  tide,  and  the  experienced  fishers  lie  off  till  it 
slackens.  But  when,  homeward  bound,  and  heavily  laden,  they 
encounter  foul  weather,  and  are  compelled  to  face  these  furinus 
tideways,  then,  in  truth,  they  have  to  encounter  such  peril  as  tests 
the  coolest  heads  and  most  iron  nerves.  And  then  it  is  (but  only 
when  driven  to  the  last  extremity)  that  they  put  in  practice  the 
seal's  method  of  producing  the  "  lioom,"  and  purchase  their  safety 
by  sacrificing  part  of  their  hardly-earned  cargo.  Cutting  open  their 
fish  (chiefly  cod  and  ling),  they  tear  out  the  livers,  and,  crushing 
them  in  their  hands  to  free  the  oil,  they  throw  them  overboard  ou 
every  side. 

Immediately,  as  if  by  a  miracle,  the  mad  raging  of  the  waters  is 
allayed.     In  one  moment,  a  film  of  oil  overspreads  the  surface,  and 


OIL- YIELDING  FISH.  385 

though  the  great  waves  still  heave  and  roll,  they  are  spell-hound, 
and  cannot  hreak,  and  the  little  hoat,  which  hut  a  few  seconds 
hefore  was  in  imminent  danger  of  heing  swamped,  now  rides 
securely  on  the  smooth  green  hillows,  which  from  that  moment 
have  hecome  powerless  to  work  mischief. 

We  need  not  go  far  for  instances  of  the  rough-and-ready  applica- 
tion of  fish-oil  in  its  crude  form.  Mr.  Anderson,  writing  from 
Edinhurgh,  tells  how,  some  years  ago,  a  numher  of  fishermen  in  his 
employment  were  caught  in  a  storm  thirty  miles  east  of  the  Isle  of 
May,  in  the  Firth  of  Forth.  As  their  only  hope  of  salvation,  they 
had  to  cut  open  the  skate,  ling,  and  cod,  mince  up  the  livers,  and 
cast  them  all  round  the  hoats. 

Almost  instantaneously  they  found  themselves  floating  in  gentle 
rolling  waves,  though  on  every  side  of  them  the  crested  hillows 
continued  to  hreak  furiously.  The  oil  was  not  quickly  dissipated, 
hut  floated  in  a  compact  hody,  and  in  this  smooth  water  the  hoats, 
BO  lately  in  dire  peril,  lay  for  ten  hours,  till  the  tempest  suhsided, 
and  they  were  enahled  to  return  to  port. 

Fishermen  take  note  of  how  the  sea  falls  to  a  gentle  roll  when 
they  are  hauling  up  their  well-filled  herring  nets,  though  it  had 
previously  appeared  ready  to  engulf  them.  Thus  at  Fraserhurgh, 
where  there  is  a  constant  influx  of  hoats  laden  with  herring,  the 
large  amount  of  hilge-water  from  the  hoats  calms  down  the  sea  to  a 
gentle  roll,  and  allows  of  the  hoats  entering  the  harhour  with  the 
greatest  safety,  though  the  waves  are  hreaking  over  the  pier. 

On  our  own  northern  coast,  the'  herring  fishers  say  they  can  tell 
at  a  distance  where  the  shoals  of  oily  fish  are  lying,  hy  the  smooth- 
ness of  the  water  over  them.  The  Cornish  fishers  can  likewise  detect 
the  position  of  the  pilchards.  In  the  same  way  those  engaged  in 
the  seal  fisheries  know  where  their  victims  are  eating  their  oily 
prey  helow  the  water,  hy  the  unruflied  surface  ahove  them.  So, 
also,  th'e  track  of  a  wounded  whale  or  porpoise  is  clearly  defined  hy 
the  escape  of  oil,  and  it  has  often  heen  ohserved  that  the  hody  of  a 
dead  whale  always  floats  in  calm  water — however  rough  the  sea  all 
round  may  he,  no  hreakers  can  form  near  that  natural  oil-vat. 

In  the  Highlands  (where  the  excitement  of  leistering  salmon  hy 

G  c 


386  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

torchlight  on  a  dark  night  is  a  sport  not  altogether  unknown,  even 
in  these  days  of  salmon  commissioners,  and  watchers,  and  water- 
bailiffs)  we  are  well  aware  of  the  use  often  made  by  poachers  (and 
other  folk  besides)  of  a  good  flask  of  oil,  wherewith  to  smooth 
the  surface  of  the  deep  brown  pool  where  the  silvery  salmon  lie  all 
unconscious  of  the  impending  spear.  Often  the  oil  is  mixed  with 
sand,  and  thus  thrown  far  up-stream  to  calm  the  ripples. 

Just  in  the  same  way  is  oil  used  by  the  fishers  of  Bermuda,  and 
by  the  men  of  Corsica  and  Syria.  The  boatmen  of  the  Persian 
Gulf  habitually  carry  bladders  filled  with  oil,  and  in  rough 
weather  tow  them  astern  of  their  frail  craft,  having  first  pricked 
them  so  as  to  cause  a  moderate  leakage  as  they  run  through  the 
waves. 

The  oyster  fishers  of  Gibraltar  always  carry  a  flask  of  oil  to  still 
the  motion  of  the  sea,  and  enable  them  better  to  discern  the  largest 
oysters.  So  too  do  the  men  of  Samoa,  and  other  Pacific  Islanders, 
carry  gourds,  or  large  nuts,  filled  with  cocoa-nut  oil,  to  aid  them  in 
spearing  fish  on  the  coral  reef. 

Strange,  is  it  not,  that  a  phenomenon  so  widely  known  should 
through  so  many  ages  have  been  turned  to  so  little  practical  account ! 
How  many  centuries  have  elapsed  since  Pliny  recorded  how  "  all 
seas  are  made  calme  and  still  with  oyle,  and  therefore  the  dyvers  do 
spurt  it  abroad  with  their  mouths  into  the  water,  because  it  dulceth 
the  unpleasant  nature  thereof,  and  carryeth  a  light  with  it."  At 
the  present  day  the  divers  of  the  Mediterranean  actually  do  spurt 
oil  in  the  way  Pliny  described,  in  order  to  clear  the  light  under  the 
surface  of  the  water  by  the  stillness  so  caused. 

Year  by  year  has  passed  by,  each  season  swelling  the  multitude 
of  unnumbered  dead  who  have  perished  within  sight  of  land,  because 
no  boat  could  live  in  the  white  sea  of  breaking  billows,  and  yet 
until  quite  recently  no  steps  have  been  taken  to  bring  into  system- 
atic use  this  most  unobtrusive,  but  most  valuable,  ally  of  all  whose 
life-work  involves  hard  struggles  with  stormy  waves  and  tempests. 
Indeed,  so  entirely  has  the  subject  been  treated  as  a  vain  dream, 
that  any  person  venturing  to  bring  the  topic  forward  as  one  worthy 
the  attention  of  practical  men,  has  generally  been  listened  to  with 


OIL  ON  THE  WATERS.  387 

the  polite  incredulity  nsuallj  bestowed  on  stories  of  the  great  sea- 
serpent 

And  yet  there  were  not  lacking  proofs  enough  and  to  spare. 
Again  and  again  have  vessels  engaged  in  collecting  palm-oil  on  the 
African  coast,  or  Ceylon,  or  the  Pacific  Isles,  and  still  more  fre- 
quently, whaling  ships  laden  with  whale-oil  and  blubber,  reported 
the  strange  calm  which  always  seemed  to  surround  them,  owing  to 
the  leakage  of  oil  pumped  up  with  the  bilge-water,  whereas  the 
ships  lying  near  them,  carrying  dry  cargo,  are  tossing  and  pitching 
on  a  white-crested  sea.  So  fully  is  this  fact  recognized,  that  a 
multitude  of  vessels  employed  on  the  whale  fisheries  are  so  old  and 
rotten  that  they  could  not  be  sent  on  other  service,  but  the  nature 
of  theit  cargo  is  their  safeguard. 

From  Newfoundland  and  Labrador  we  have  heard  how  such 
vessels,  when  riding  out  fierce  gales,  have  saved  themselves  by 
throwing  overboard  small  quantities  of  blubber ;  and  many  cases  are 
on  record  of  vessels  having  been  well-nigh  wrecked — ^the  breakers 
pouring  over  them  till  they  seemed  on  the  point  of  foundering — 
when  happily  the  oil-casks  have  broken  adrift  and  been  smashed. 
So  instantly  have  their  contents  overcome  the  mad  waters,  that  the 
raging  waves  could  no  longer  break  over  the  ship,  though  they 
heaved  and  tossed  as  tumultuously  as  before.  They  seemed  spell- 
bound, and  could  not  succeed  in  forming  crests.  And  so  the  men 
have  been  enabled  to  work  the  pumps,  and  of  course  the  oil  from 
the  broken  casks  in  the  hold  kept  up  the  supply — effectually  pre- 
venting the  waves  from  breaking.  Thus  the  vessels  have  actually 
been  enabled  to  ride  out  the  storm,  and  eventually  reach  their 
desired  haven. 

All  on  board  have  known  that  the  preservation  of  the  ships,  and 
of  their  own  lives,  was  due  to  the  action  of  that  precious  oil,  yet, 
year  after  year,  thousands  of  vessels  start  to  face  the  dangers  of 
the  deep,  and  never  think  of  shipping  a  few  extra  casks  of  oil  in 
case  of  need.  This  may  be  partly  due  to  the  notion  that  a  very 
large  quantity  would  be  required ;  but,  in  truth,  a  most  marked 
point  of  the  seeming  miracle  is  the  exceedingly  small  amount 
which  produces  such  amazing  results.     So  extraordinary  is  the 

0  0  2 


388  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

fluidity  of  oil,  that  one  drop  falling  on  water  will  instantly  form  a 
film  of  about  four  feet  in  circumference.  It  has  now  been  proved, 
in  dozens  of  cases,  and  on  the  sworn  evidence  of  ship-masters,  that 
vessel  after  vessel  of  heavy  tonnage  has  been  saved  by  the  nse  of  a 
couple  of  oil  bags,  no  bigger  than  a  man's  hat,  hung  over  the  side 
of  the  ship,  and  allowed  slowly  to  drip  during  several  hours,  till  the 
fury  of  the  gale  was  spent 

The  subject  of  thus  "smoothing  the  waters"  was  brought  very 
forcibly  to  my  mind  when,  crossing  the  Yellow  Sea  in  a  small 
brig,  we  came  in  for  some  rough  weather ;  and  though  we  had  no 
occasion  actually  to  test  the  matter,  our  good  Danish  captain  was 
ready  to  do  so,  had  the  gale  increased.  He  told  me  he  had 
frequently  carried  a  long  wicker  basket  astern,  containing  oil-bags, 
so  contrived  thfit,  by  their  gentle  dripping,  a  constant  supply  should 
be  kept  up.  The  result  was  admirable.  Not  one  wave  broke  over 
the  ship.  The  expenditure  of  oil  was  a  trifle  not  worth  a  moment's 
consideration,  compared  with  the  damage  which  would  certainly 
have  been  done  had  even  one  white-crested  breaker  been  permitted 
to  form,  as  any  one  must  realize  who  has  once  experienced  the 
awful  crash  when  a  huge  curling  wave  strikes  a  shivering  ship — the 
weight  of  falling  water  crushing  boats  and  bulwarks,  and  sweeping 
the  decks. 

Another  of  my  nautical  friends,  Captain  Champion  (under  whose 
good  care  I  have  visited  many  a  beautiful  spot  in  the  Fijian  Aidii- 
pelago),  had  also  tested  this  magic  power  of  oil  in  allaying  the 
tumult  of  the  waters.  On  one  occasion,  when  off  the  coast  of  New 
South  Wales,  he  encountered  a  hurricane  so  severe  that  he  believes 
his  schooner  would  undoubtedly  have  been  swamped,  had  he  not 
had  recourse  to  oil-bags,  which  smoothed  the  crested  waves  in  a 
manner  that  seemed  miraculous.  He  made  Ave  small  canvas  bags, 
each  to  contain  three  pints  of  flsh-oiL  To  each  of  these  he  attached 
a  cord  of  about  a  dozen  fathoms  in  length,  and  threw  them  over- 
board from  difEerent  parts  of  the  ship,  fore  and  aft  The  leakage 
from  these  bags  sptead  an  oily  film  over  the  surface  of  the  ocean  all 
round  the  ship,  and  lasted  for  two  days  and  nights.  Beyond  the 
charmed  circle  the  white-crested  waves  were  dashing  madly,  but  bo 


OILING  THE  WAVES.  389 

soon  as  they  approached  within  the  magic  influence  of  the  oil,  each 
wave  ceased  to  curl,  and  rolled  hy  in  great  glassy  undulations. 
From  the  moment  the  bags  were  hung  out,  not  another  wave  broke 
over  the  schooner,  which  during  those  two  days  rode  in  compara- 
tively smooth  water. 

Instances,  almost  without  number,  can  be  brought  forward  of 
vessels  which  have  undoubtedly  been  saved  from  destruction  by 
means  of  this  most  simple  and  blessed  safeguard,  but  in  every  case 
it  is  recorded  as  though  some  strange  thing  had  happened  to  them, 
instead  of  being  the  natural  result  of  a  certain  cause. 

A  very  striking  example  was  recorded  in  the  year  1846,  when 
the  schooner  Arno,  commanded  by  Captain  Higgins,  was  caught  in 
a  heavy  gale  off  Sable  Island.  She  had  been  engaged  in  the 
fisheries  off  the  Quero  Bank  when  the  storm  commenced.  For 
some  hours  she  rode  at  her  anchor  through  a  tremendous  gale,  but 
as  the  danger  of  foundering  seemed  imminent,  the  captain  deemed 
it  wiser  to  run  her  on  shore  than  to  face  the  almost  certainty  of 
foundering  in  deep  water  during  the  night.  Lashing  himself  to  the 
helm,  he  bade  his  men  fill  two  large  casks  with  fish-oil  and  blubber, 
and  lash  the  casks  near  the  fore-shrouds,  and  lash  the  two  best  men 
to  the  casks.  He  then  bade  all  go  below,  while  these  two,  armed 
with  long  wooden  ladles,  scooped  up  the  blubber  and  oil,  and  threw 
it  as  high  as  they  could  in  the  air,  that  the  wind  might  carry  it 
before  them. 

The  wind  carried  the  oil  far  to  leeward,  scattered  it  over  the 
water,  and  made  a  broad  shining  strip  of  smooth  water, — billowy 
indeed,  but  quite  glassy, — and  over  this  the  schooner  flew,  never 
shipping  a  sea.  On  either  side  the  white  crests  were  pitching 
and  breaking,  but  the  little  vessel  glided  securely  over  her  charmed 
pathway,  and  not  a  barrel  of  water  fell  on  her  deck,  till  she  ran 
right  on  to  the  sandy  beach,  and  the  crew,  with  their  clothing  and 
provisions,  were  safely  landed  ere  the  vessel  went  to  pieces.  She 
was  so  old  and  rotten  that  she  would  probably  have  broken  up  long 
before,  had  not  her  constantly  renewed  cargo  of  blubber  kept  her 
always  floating  in  comparatively  smooth  waters. 

Another  striking  illustration  of  the  use  of  oil  as  a  safeguard  in 


390  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

tempest  was  furnished  by  the  evidence  of  Captain  Betts,  of  the 
Kiiig  Cennc,  running  coal  from  Liverpool  to  Bombay.  He  en- 
countered a  furious  gale,  which  raged  continuously  for  nearly  five 
days.  Tremendous  seas  poured  over  the  quarter  and  stem  of  the 
vessel,  which  was  in  imminent  risk,  when  happily  the  chief  officer, 
Mr.  Bowyer,  bethought  him  of  an  expedient  which  he  had  seen 
successfully  resorted  to  on  various  occasions  in  Atlantic  storms. 

He  got  out  two  canvas  clothes-bags,  and  into  each  poured  two 
gallons  of  pine-oil.  Ho  punctured  the  bags  slightly,  and  flung  one 
over  each  quarter,  towing  them  along.  The  effect  was  magicaL 
The  waves  no  longer  broke  against  the  poop  and  sides  of  the  ship, 
but  at  a  distance  of  many  yards. 

Around  the  poop,  in  the  wake  of  the  vessel,  was  a  large  circuit 
of  calm  water,  where  the  oil  had  overspread  the  surface.  The  crew 
were  thus  able  to  repair  damages,  the  ship  being  relieved  from  those 
tremendous  shocks  received  from  the  mass  of  waters  which  had 
previously  poured  over  the  vessel,  and  the  danger  was  considerably 
lessened. 

The  two  bags  lasted  two  days,  after  which,  the  worst  fury  of  the 
gale  having  expended  itself,  it  was  unnecessary  to  renew  the  supply. 
Four  gallons  of  oil,  scarcely  worth  30s.  perhaps,  saved  the  King 
CenriCf  its  cargo,  and  the  lives  and  property  of  its  crew. 

In  the  New  York  shipping  list  for  1867  the  evidence  of  an 
experienced  skipper  is  given,  to  the  effect  that  on  two  occasions  he 
had  saved  his  ship  by  the  timely  use  of  oil.  As  the  result  of  Im 
own  experience,  he  recommended  that  every  large  vessel  should  be 
fitted  with  a  couple  of  iron  tanks,  one  on  each  side,  each  to  contain 
forty  gallons  of  oil,  which  might  readily  be  drawn  off  into  small 
casks,  as  required.  He  also  strongly  advocated  that  every  boat 
should  be  furnished  with  a  fivo-gallon  oil-tank,  to  be  kept  always 
full,  in  case  of  need. 

To  the  natural  objection  that  such  a  well-filled  oil-tank  would 
add  a  considerable  item  of  dead  weight  to  a  boat,  the  answer  is 
obvious,  namely,  that  the  labour  and  danger  of  battling  with  the 
waves  would  be  so  enormously  lessened,  that  the  mere  weight  would 
appear  a  comparatively  trifling  drawback.     Moreover,  any  accidental 


OILING  THE  WAVES,  '     391 

leakage  of  oil  would  tend  to  keep  the  boats  water-tight  at  all 
times. 

Some  men  carry  oil-bladders  merely  pricked  with  a  needle,  and 
suspended  from  the  sides  of  the  ship,  so  as  to  drip  slowly.  They 
consider  that  several  small  bladders  answer  better  than  only  one  of 
larger  size. 

Captain  Atkinson,  of  the  ship  British  Peer,  states  that  he  carries 
leather  bags  punctured  with  small  holes,  and  in  stormy  weather  he 
fills  them  with  oil,  and  hangs  them  astern  of  the  vessel.  He  says 
it  is  marvellous  to  see  the  angry  billows  subside,  and  ride  under 
the  oily  track  which  lies  in  her  wake.  He  attributes  the  safety  of 
his  vessel  in  several  perilous  gales  to  the  use  of  this  simple  pre- 
caution. 

Yerj  noteworthy,  too,  is  the  case  of  a  small  sailing-boat,  the 
Leone  di  Caprera,  in  which  two  rash  Italians  last  year  crossed  the 
Atlantic  from  Buenos  Ayres  to  the  Mediterranean.  They  had  had 
the  forethought  to  lay  in  as  much  oil  as  their  tiny  craft  would 
carry,  and  this  they  used  freely  each  time  that  the  waves  were 
dangerously  high,  with  the  happy  result  of  reaching  their  destination 
in  safety. 

Again,  look  at  the  case  of  the  screw-steamer  Diamond,  of  Dundee, 
which  was  wrecked  ofT  the  island  of  Anholt.  Though  the  crew  did 
not  really  believe  it  possible  that  their  frail  boats  could  live  in 
such  a  raging  sea,  still,  as  it  was  their  only  hope,  they  resolved  to 
forsake  the  steamer.  Each  boat  was  provided  with  a  five  gallon 
can  of  oil,  and  from  the  moment  each  was  lowered,  one  man  was 
told  off  to  pour  it  veiy  slowly  over  the  stem.  The  effect  was 
instantaneous  ;  each  boat  passed  safely  through  the  awful  breakers, 
and  actually  reached  the  shore  without  taking  in  so  much  as  a 
bucketful  of  sea  water  1 

Within  the  last  few  months,  since  some  measure  of  public 
interest  has  been  aroused  in  the  subject,  a  considerable  number  of 
cases  have  been  recorded,  in  which  the  safety  of  vessels  has  un- 
doubtedly been  due  to  the  timely  use  of  this  simple  safeguard. 

A  very  noteworthy  case  is  that  of  the  screw-steamer  North  Cam- 
bria, of  Newcastle,  which  reached  Liverpool  from  Kew  York  in 


302  IN   THE  HEBRIDES. 

March  1883,  after  passing  through  one  of  the  worst  gales  which  in 
this  terrible  year  of  storms  has  visited  the  wide  Atlantic.  The  case 
is  thus  reported  in  *  The  Newcastle  Chronicle.' 

*'  The  8.8.  North  Cambria,  which  is  a  comparatively  new  steamer  of  strong^ 
build,  sailed  from  New  York  on  February  22nd,  and  on  March  1st  fell  in  with 
a  terrific  gale,  which  so  increased  on  the  following  day,  that  the  steamer 
received  considerable  damage  through  the  huge  mountains  of  water  breaking 
with  crushing  force  on  the  decks. 

'*  Such  was  the  state  of  the  weather  in  the  afternoon  of  the  2nd  inst.,  wheQ 
Captain  Evans  resolved  to  'pour  oil  on  the  troubled  waters.'  This  he  did 
with  wondrous  effect  The  waves,  so  to  speak,  were  at  once  quelled,  and  pre- 
vented from  breaking  on  board  with  their  previous  destructive  force,  and  the 
crew  were  enabled  to  go  about  the  deck  without  apprehension  of  danger,  and 
repair  the  havoc  made  by  the  seas. 

"  As  mentioned  in  the  log,  in  the  first  emergency,  the  oil  was  poured  over  the 
ship's  side,  and  so  marvellous  was  the  effect,  that  the  sailors'  bags,  to  the 
number  of  eight,  were  then  put  over  on  the  weather  side,  until  new  canvas 
bags  were  made.  These  were  filled  with  oil,  and  kept  in  use,  to  the  saving  of 
the  steamer,  until  the  gale  abated  on  the  following  morning  about  one  o'clock, 
and  to  this  timely  application  of  an  old  saying  is  due  the  safety  of  the  North 
Cambria,  her  crew,  and  valuable  cargo. 

"  It  may  be  mentioned  that  this  is  not  the  first  occasion  on  which  Captain 
Wm.  Evans  has  proved  the  value  of  oil  in  preserving  a  vessel  in  a  gale.  In 
the  winter  of  1877  he  was  master  of  the  barque  Gateshead,  and  while  bringing 
the  first  cargo  of  Indian  com  direct  from  New  York  to  the  Tyne,  he  encountered 
a  tremendous  gale,  during  which  the  ship  was  pooped  by  a  heavy  sea,  which 
swept  the  decks  fore  and  aft,  smashing  the  wheel,  and  washing  the  man  over> 
board,  besides  doing  other  considerable  damage.  In  that  emeigency  Captain 
Evans  pom^  oil  over  the  bow,  and  immediately  the  sea  was  so  calmed  that 
he  was  enabled  to  heave  the  ship  to  in  safety. 

"It  may  be  mentioned  that  the  above  statements  are  verified  by  Mr. 
Short,  chief  engineer  of  the  North  Cambria,  and  Mr.  Farina,  inspecting 
engineer. 

'*  The  following  is  an  extract  from  the  log  of  the  North  Cambria ;— '  March 
1st,  188.3,  9  a.m. — An  increasing  wind  and  sea,  with  every  appearance  of  a 
severe  gale.  March  2nd— The  safety  of  the  ship  became  so  seriously  endan* 
gered  that  we  tried  to  break  the  force  of  the  seas  by  pouring  oil  over  the  ship's 
side,  which  immediately  produced  a  wonderful  effect  on  the  sea,  preventing  it 
from  breaking  with  force  on  the  ship,  so  that  we  were  able  to  go  about  the 
decks  to  secure  the  hatchings  and  tarpaulings.  4  to  8  p.m. — The  hurricane 
still  raging,  and  gradually  veering  to  the  westward,  with  threatening,  confused 
tea.    Continued  to  use  oil,  putting  it  into  bags,  which  were  put  over  the  side. 


oiLma  THE  WAVES.  393 

The  oil  bags  proved  a  wonderful  protection.    Midnight. — Fast  moderating, 
with  every  appearance  of  fine  weather,  and  much  less  sea. 

*'*  March  3rd,  I  a.m.— Kept  the  ship  to  her  course  at  full  speed ;  every 
prospect  of  fine  weather,  the  sea  going  down  fast  Took  the  oil  bags  on  board, 
having  used  forty  gallons  of  paint  oil,  and  fifty  gallons  of  engine  oil,  and  thirty 
yards  of  canvas  for  bags,  and  fifty  fathoms  of  rattling  line  to  tow  them  with. 
The  oil  poured  on  the  sea  at  first,  and  afterwards  us^  in  the  canvas  bags,  in 
our  opinion,  saved  the  ship  from  destruction.  On  further  examination,  found 
signs  of  severe  straining  about  the  decks.'" 

The  *  St.  James'  Gazette,'  May  lOth,  1883,  quotes  letters  from 
H.M.S.  Swi/tsure,  telling  of  a  terrific  gale  on  the  6th  April,  when 
heavy  seas  broke  over  her,  and  as  an  experiment,  a  bag  containing 
oil  was  rigged  out  over  the  weather  side,  with  such  marked  effect 
on  the  waves,  that  the  vessel  rode  bravely  through  the  gale. 

From  Melbourne  come  details  of  the  wreck  of  the  steamer 
Balgaim  on  October  11th,  1882.  "  An  attempt  was  made  to  land 
the  passengers  and  crew  by  means  of  a  ladder  run  out  from  the  ship 
to  the  edge  of  the  rocks,  but  the  continual  wash  of  sea  prevented 
this,  until  one  of  the  engineers  poured  a  large  quantity  of  oil  on 
the  water,  which  had  the  effect  of  at  once  making  the  sea  smooth. 
The  passengers  and  crew  were  then  safely  landed." 

I  will  only  quote  one  other  case,  which  occurred  off  Tynemouth 
last  December.  A  wild  easterly  gale  was  blowing  with  great 
violence,  and  the  sea  at  the  mouth  of  the  Tyne  was  one  wild  wide 
expanse  of  boiling  surf. 

The  Ecist  Anglian^  steamer,  from  Yarmouth,  in  charge  of  Captain 
Eeecher,  made  the  entrance  when  the  gale  was  at  its  worst,  and 
when  great  danger  attended  any  vessel  passing  the  bar.  The  master 
reports  that  he  resolved  to  try  the  effect  of  oil  upon  the  waves,  and 
stationed  two  men,  each  with  a  two-gallon  bottle  of  oil,  at  the 
Tcssel's  bows,  one  on  either  side.  The  oil  was  gently  poured  upon 
the  "  broken  "  water,  and  the  effect  was  that  it  became  compara- 
tively smooth  at  once,  and  the  vessel  passed  into  the  harbour 
with  little  difficulty.  The  oil  used  was  that  usually  burnt  in  the 
ship's  lamps,  and  only  four  or  five  gallons  were  poured  upon  the 
sea 

It  has  been  stated  that  oil  is  not  always  efficacious  in  quelling 


394  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

the  short,  jagged  waves,  which  form  what  is  called  a  ''  chopping 
sea."  This,  however,  does  not  appear  to  he  proven.  There  is  also 
some  diver^iiity  in  the  evidence  as  to  the  power  possessed  bj  oil  in 
overspreadiug  the  surface  of  the  water  in  the  teeth  of  the  wind. 
The  whalers  appear  to  have  decided  that  the  surest  solution  of 
the  question  is  to  keep  their  whales  to  windward,  so  as  to  insure 
calm  water  while  they  are  being  cut  up  and  shorn  of  their 
blubber.  Ordinary  cargo  is  generally  discharged,  or  shipped,  to 
leeward. 

Of  course  if  oil  cannot  spread  to  windward,  its  efficacy  must  be 
considerably  diminished.  Some  very  simple  mechanical  appliance 
might,  however,  be  devised,  with  a  force-pump  and  jet,  whereby  the 
oil  might  be  mixed  with  sand  and  thrown  from  the  boat  or  vessel, 
so  as  to  sprinkle  the  water  at  a  distance  of  a  few  feet  ahead,  thus 
gaining  a  considerable  advantage. 

We  have  seen  how,  in  such  a  case  as  that  of  the  Shetland 
fishers,  a  well-laden  fishing-boat  carries  her  best  protection  in  her 
cargo.  As,  however,  she  may  chance  to  fall  in  with  foul  weather, 
and  empty  nets,  it  is  obviously  more  secure  for  every  boatinvariablj 
to  carry  two  or  three  gallons  of  coarse  oil  ready  for  use  in  any 
emergency.  The  dark  oil  extracted  from  the  livers  of  various  fish 
is  probably  the  cheapest,  costing  from  Is.  dd,  to  2«.  per  gallon. 
Indeed,  this  can  be  made  by  the  fishers  themselves,  from  the  refuse 
thrown  aside  in  cleaning  their  fish. 

A  boat  thus  provided  can  smooth  a  path  for  herself  across  the 
stormiest  bar,  at  the  most  dangerous  harbour-mouth. 

As  one  clear  fact  outweighs  many  vague  statements,  I  will  quote 
the  case  of  the  Stonehaven  boats,  which  were  caught  in  a  very 
severe  gale  on  the  13th  of  April,  1882.  The  first  to  return  experi- 
enced the  utmost  difficulty  in  crossing  the  bar,  and  as  the  storm 
increased,  and  the  waves  waxed  more  and  more  tumultuous,  the 
gravest  fears  were  entertained  for  the  boat  Pioneer,  which  was  still 
missing.  Happily,  her  skipper,  Alexander  Christie,  bethought  him 
of  the  experiments  recently  tried  at  Peterhead,  and  though  he  had 
no  oil  on  board  save  a  little  colza,  and  a  little  paraffin,  for  the  boat*s 
lamps,  he  determined  to  try  whether  so  small  a  quantity  could  be 


USB  OF  AN  OIL-FLASK.  395 

of  any  use.  There  was  so  little  of  it  that  it  reaUy  seemed  childish 
to  suppose  that  so  infimtesimal  a  remedy  could  avail.  Nevertheless, 
he  stationed  a  man  on  either  bow,  and  just  as  they  approached  the 
awful  wall  of  raging  surf,  they  slowly  poured  out  the  contents  of 
their  oil-flasks.  The  result  was  magical.  The  white  waters  were 
driven  back,  and  the  boat  glided  into  harbour  over  great  billows  of 
glassy  green. 

There  were  some  who,  on  hearing  of  this  case,  refused  at  first  to 
give  it  credit,  till  it  was  proved  beyond  all  question.  Yet  this  is 
simply  the  course  adopted  by  the  fishermen  of  Lisbon  whenever 
they  find  the  surf  on  the  bar  of  the  Tagus  unusually  rough.  They 
empty  a  flask  of  oil  on  the  sea,  well  knowing,  from  long  experience, 
that  the  white-crested  breakers  will  thereby  be  transformed  to  great 
green  rollers,  over  which  they  can  glide  in  safety. 

But  though  this  has  been  well  known  for  many  years,  no  one 
ever  took  that  hint  as  the  embryo  of  some  grand  scheme  for  over- 
coming the  horrors  of  landing  in  the  surf  at  Madras,  or  at  many 
another  port  where  traffic  is  endangered  by  the  fierceness  of  the 
breakers. 

No  one  ever  tried  to  apply  it  to  the  dangerous  bars  at  the  mouths 
of  several  of  our  own  large  rivers,  where  we  have  had  to  mourn 
such  pitiful  wrecks  of  fine  vessels,  literally  dashed  to  pieces  by  the 
mad  surf  breaking  on  the  bar. 

The  only  systematic  application  of  this  branch  of  the  oil  question 
which  has  yet  been  attempted,  is  that  made  by  Mr.  Shields  of 
Perth,  at  Peterhead  in  Aberdeenshire,  a  spot  selected  as  being  the 
most  exposed  to  every  gale  that  sweeps  the  eastern  shores  of  Scot- 
land, and  one,  moreover,  where  a  dangerous  bar  makes  the  entrance 
to  the  harbour  a  matter  of  exceeding  difficulty  and  risk  in  stormy 
weather. 

Mr.  Shields  determined  to  try  a  series  of  experiments  to  prove  in 
what  manner  oil  might  most  certainly  be  made  'kvailable,  to  enable 
ships  and  boats  to  enter  this  and  other  harbours  at  all  seasons. 

His  tests  have  been  made  on  a  veiy  large  scale.  He  carried 
1200  feet  of  lead  and  iron  piping  from  the  shore  to  some  distance 
beyond  the  mouth  of  the  harbour,  where  they  terminated  in  deep 


393  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

water.  In  a  shed  on  the  beach  stands  a  100-gallon  cask  of  oil ;  a 
force-pump  carries  the  oil  through  the  pipe,  and  ejects  it  through 
three  conical  valves  at  the  further  end.  Thence  it  rises  to  the 
surface,  and  straightway  forms  a  thin  film,  which  overspreads  the 
tempestuous  waters  above  the  bar.  Straightway  the  white  crests, 
which  are  the  source  of  so  much  danger,  disappear,  and  though  the 
strong  tide  still  sweeps  inwards  in  huge  swelling  billows,  they  are 
shorn  of  their  terror,  and  become  smooth  rollers,  on  which  any 
vessel  or  boat  may  ride  safely  into  the  haven.  ^ 

Of  course,  the  chief  objection  to  this  plan  is  the  very  large  amount 
of  oQ  which  must  be  expended  every  time  that  a  ship  or  boat 
approaches  ift  stormy  weather,  and  which  would  certainly  result  in 
making  the  harbour  authorities  chary  of  its  iise,  except  in  cases  of 
extreme  danger.  It  is  therefore  very  desirable  that,  in  addition  to 
the  harbour  apparatus,  means  should  be  devised  for  applying  the 
remedy  to  each  several  ship  at  the  moment  of  need  It  has  been 
suggested  that  oil-canisters  might  be  attached  to  rockets,  or  shells 
containing  oil  might  be  fired  from  mortars,  so  as  to  discharge  their 
contents  on  the  water  close  to  the  ship  in  distress,  or  at  the  moment 
she  is  about  to  cross  the  bar.  Surely  the  ingenuity  which  devises 
such  intricate  mechanism  for  destructive  shells  and  infernal  machines 
might  contrive  some  method  by  which  the  oil-shell  might  be  safely 
despatched  on  its  errand  of  mercy. 

Still  more  practical  does  it  appear,  that  every  vessel  should,  as  a 
matter  of  course,  carry  her  own  oil-supply,  with  which  to  make  a 
smooth  pathway  for  herself  in  the  hour  of  danger,  which  may  meet 
her  at  many  a  point  besides  the  harbour  mouth. 

Another  most  desirable  application  of  oil  would  be  to  attcteh  Uoo 
copper  pipes  containing  oil  round  evei*y  life-huoy — one  on  the  inner, 
the  other  on  the  outer  edge — closed  by  a  cork  attached  to  the  string 
by  which  the  buoy  is  hung  up.     A  printed  notice  should   be 

1  It  is  satisfactory  to  learn  that,  by  order  of  the  Board  of  Trade,  further 
experiments  were  made  with  Mr.  Shield's  oil  apparatus  in  Aberdeen  harbour, 
during  a  wild  March  storm,  when  the  sea,  both  within  and  without  the 
harbour,  was  one  wild  expanse  of  broken  waves.  The  official  report  states 
that  the  use  of  oil  is  no  longer  an  idea,  but  a  reality  which,  scientifically  applied, 
will  lead  to  great  and  beneficial  results. 


OIL  APPLIED  TO  LIFE-BUOYS.  397 

appended,  bidding  the  persmi  who  throws  it  overboardjjerk  the  string, 
and  so  pull  out  the  cork.^ 

Every  one  who  has  been  jnuch  at  sea  must  have  been  struck  with 
the  small  chance  that  a  drowning  man  has  of  even  seeing  the  buoj 
flung  to  him,  as  he  and  it  rise  and  fall  amid  the  mountainous 
waves.  But  this  simple  addition  wotdd  at  once  create  a  large  space 
of  glassy  water,  vidhle  for  perhaps  a  mile,  in  which,  moreover,  he 
could  float  securely,  till  the  vessel,  probably  running  before  the  wind, 
was  able  to  lower  her  boat  and  send  him  succour.  At  present,  we  all 
know  how  rarely  such  seekers  are  able  even  to  find  their  life-buoy. 

If  the  vessel  is  running  before  a  stiff  breeze,  the  life-buoy  and 
the  swimmer  are  left  far  behind  ere  she  can  be  stayed  and  a  boat 
lowered,  and  it  is  hard  indeed  to  mark  the  exact  spot  on  that 
wearily  monotonous  waste  of  ever-heaving,  foam-flecked  waters 
where  the  search  must  begin. 

With  oil  thus  applied,  and  life-buoys  made  luminous,  one  great 
danger  in  a  sailor's  hard  life  would  be  veiy  greatly  lessened. 

Furthermore,  it  might  be  so  contrived  that  the  man  at  the  wheel 
could  reach  a  handle,  by  which  to  open  a  valve  or  elbow  in  an  oil-tank 
in  the  stern  of  the  ship.  In  the  event  of  a  person  falling  overboard, 
the  drip  of  oil  thus  produced  would  instantly  form  a  smooth  track, 
and  enable  a  boat  to  go  straight  back  to  the  rescue  of  tlie  drowning  man. 

So,  too,  the  life-boat,  fitted  with  a  self-acting  oil-tank,  would  find 
her  approach  to  a  ship  in  distress  vastly  facilitated,  were  the  break- 
ing of  the  crested  waves  hindered  for  even  a  little  while. 

This  has  been  a  very  long  digression  from  the  puddings  of  sea- 
gull fat,  so  judiciously  applied  by  the  islanders  of  St.  Kilda.  But 
in  truth  the  subject  is  one  which,  to  me,  as  an  old  sailor  in  many 
seas,  possesses  a  special  interest, — an  interest  nowise  lessened  as  I 
look  at  last  year's  terrible  Begister  of  Wrecks,  knowing  that,  beyond 
all  doubt,  some  at  least  of  these,  and  assuredly  many  a  precious  life, 
might  have  been  saved  by  timely  use  of  this  most  simple  remedy. 

In  truth,  its  extreme  simplicity  seems  to  be  the  stumbling-block 

^  This  suggestion  has  been  practically  exemplified  by  Mr.  Bowman  of 
Huntly,  Aberdeenshire,  whose  Yarious  oil-buoys  are  exhibited  in  the  "  Inter- 
national Fisheries." 


398  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

in  the  way  of  its  use.  Like  the  old  Scriptural  stoxy  of  the  Leper 
General  who  scorned  the  Prophet's  prescription,  which  only  hade 
him  hathe  thrice  in  the  Jordan,  instead  of  requiring  some  great 
thing,  so  is  this  sprinkling  of  a  little  oil  on  the  mighty  waYe&  It 
seems  altogether  too  simple  to  he  worth  even  trying.  And  yet  the 
fact  of  this  mysterious  power  remains  unchanged. 

In  that  sad  Wreck-Calendar  I  find  that  hetween  June  1881  and 
June  1882,  no  less  than  1303  British  vessels  are  reported  as  lost 
(besides  1622  which  were  seriously  injured — and  such  injuries  occur 
most  frequently  hy  the  hreaking  over  the  ship  of  hig  seas). 

Of  these  wrecks,  208  are  reported  "  missing  "  (the  most  awful  of 
all  records,  as  it  implies  the  total  loss  of  all  on  hoard),  228  are  attri- 
buted to  gales,  12  to  heavy  seas. 

These  are  just  some  of  the  cases  in  which  oil  might  have  lessened 
or  averted  danger. 

The  year's  record  of  lost  lives  is  3978  (1055  more  than  in  the 
previous  twelve  months) ;  of  these  2246  were  on  hoard  the  vessels 
reported  "  missing."  No  wonder  that  the  President  of  the  Board 
of  Trade  is  compelled  to  state  that,  notwithstanding  all  recent 
legislation  for  the  good  of  our  sailors,  marine  casualties  are  as 
numerous  and  as  fatal  as  ever. 

And  all  the  time  this  most  gentle  of  all  mighty  agencies  has  been 
almost  totally  ignored,  or,  even  where  it  has  been  used,  and  has 
successfully  performed  its  magic  task,  its  benefits  have  in  general 
received  but  a  grudging  recognition. 

If,  therefore,  these  few  notes  on  its  use  serve  to  bring  the 
subject  more  clearly  to  the  mind  of  any  whose  business  lies  in  the 
great  waters,  I  shall  console  myself  with  the  hope  that  this  digres- 
sion has  not  been  altogether  in  vain.^ 

^  < Oiling  the  Waves:  a  Safeguard  in  Tempest.'  Id  April  1882  I  con-, 
tributed  a  paper  of  the  above  title  to  '  The  Nineteenth  Century,'  contaming 
many  quotations  from  the  evidence  of  seamen  on  this  subject  I  am  much 
gratifi^  to  learn  that  the  paper  has  been  reprinted  first  inthe  Sandwich  Isles ; 
then  in  paraplilet  form  (with  additional  evidence  of  the  value  of  oil  on  broken 
waves)  by  a  Sailors*  Institute  in  New  Zealand  ;  and  thirdly  by  Bishop  Stanton, 
for  free  circulation  in  his  diocese  of  North  Queensland,  where  so  many  **  barred 
rivers"  endanger  navigation. 


IN  THE  ROCK  WILDERNESS.  399 


CHAPTER  XIV. ' 

FAREWELL  TO  THE  ISLES. 

Three  Weeks  alone  in  the  Rock  Wilderness— A  Family  of  **  Eaavdings  "— 
Yachtsmen— Sligachan  Inn— The  Ouchullins— Divers  Tourists— Loch 
Ck)rruLsk— A  Good  Day's  Deer  Stalking -Old  Boar  Hunt— A  Whale 
Ashore— *'  Blocs  Perch^'^—G'iaxit  Fossils  on  Isle  of  Eigg— Legends  of 
Clan  Fights— The  Qrave  of  a  Viking's  Daughter— Old  Churchyards  of 
Snizort,  Nigg,  &c.— Of  Funeral  Feasts— The  Skye  Railway  foreseen  by 
Local  Seers— Drive  vid  Balmacarra  and  Loch  Alsh  to  Shiel  House  Inn— 
Eilean  Donan  Castle — Qlen  Quoich — Fort  Augustus— Castle  Urquhart. 

However  valuable  to  the  storm-tossed  mariner  may  be  the  soothing 
influence  of  oil  on  the  waters,  we  certainly  needed  none  on  our 
present  cruise,  for  we  watched  the  smooth,  glassy,  unrippled  surface 
of  the  water  till  we  despaired  of  ever  getting  out  of  harbour. 

At  last,  however,  the  welcome  breeze  sprang  up,  and  when  the 
spirit  of  the  wind  did  awaken,  it  did  so  in  good  earnest,  and  we 
straightway  returned  to  Loch  Staffin,  where  I  had  determined  to 
have  two  or  three  weeks  alone  with  the  rock-spirits  of  Quiraing. 

It  was  very  dismal  to  watch  my  playfellows  sail  away  in  the 
evening,  but  I  received  a  cordial  welcome  in  the  wee  inn,  though 
"  inn  "  I  should  not  call  the  kindly  farmhouse  where  I  found  myself 
in  the  position  of  an  honoured  guest.  My  gentle  landlord  was 
most  assiduons  in  his  care,  and  being  the  only  creature  who  could 
speak  a  word  of  English,  used  anxiously  to  come  and  interpret 
whatever  information  might  be  necessary,  to  the  one  fair  spirit  who 


400  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

was  my  minister — namely,  a  strapping,  cheery  wench,  Peggy  Mor, 
who,  though  of  course  utterly  guiltless  of  English,  was  wonderfully 
"  gleg  at  the  uptak."  ^  This  was  fortunate,  as  her  master  was 
generally  ahsent  all  day.  When  my  intelligent  giantess  succeeded 
in  understanding  my  various  signs  she  would  pat  and  stroke  me 
exultingly,  uttering  clicks  and  chuckles  of  exceeding  interest  and 
delight. 

Mine  host  was,  in  some  way,  responsible  for  all  the  lunatics  in 
the  district,  and  being  a  man  of  a  tender  heart,  could  rarely  resist 
the  appeal  of  any  who  were  particularly  anxious  to  leave  the  asylum, 
and  find  occupation  among  his  herdsmen.  So  it  came  to  pass  that 
various  strange  beings  haunted  the  neighbourhood,  haavelinySy  as 
we  call  half-witted  creatures  on  the  mainland.  One  in  particular 
who  herded  the  Jcye  was  engaged  in  a  ceaseless  warfare  with  devils, 
and  was  for  ever  battling  with  invisible  foes,  in  order  to  protect 
himself  and  us.  The  raging  waves  were  an  especial  annoyance  to 
him,  and  he  attributed  their  noise  to  myriads  of  women  roaring  in 
concert. 

It  used  to  amuse  me  in  the  evenings  ;to  hear  all  the  farm  lads 
and  lasses  gathered  round  the  kitchen  fire,  "  laughing  and  daffin' 
and  lilting  and  quafifing,''  and  after  their  simple  supper  of  porridge 
and  milk,  singing  all  manner  of  Gaelic  songs  and  choruses,  which 
were  just  sufficiently  softened  by  distance  to  lose  their  harslmess ; 
"  low  winding  songs,  with  as  little  beginning  or  end  as  the  murmur 
of  a  brook,"  and  well  in  keeping  with  the  wild  sea  and  mountains 
round  me. 

Each  day  that  promised  a  tolerable  allowance  of  sunshine  I  went 
up  to  the  Kock  Wilderness,  getting  a  lift  in  "  the  cart,"  which  was 
full  of  sweet  fresh  straw,  very  needful,  considering  the  character  of 
the  ground  over  which  we  jolted.  But  on  the  whole,  the  rain  had 
the  best  of  it,  and  though  a  waterproof  rug  and  waterproof  coat 
made  me  quite  amphibious,  my  sketching  blocks  lived  under  shadow 
of  an  umbreUa  which,  alas  !  was  rapidly  giving  up  the  ghost  What 
was  to  be  done  1 

The  problem  was  solved  by  the  return  of  mine  host  from  a  distant 

^  Quick  at  understanding. 


SAXON  AND  CELT.  401 

cattle  market,  whence  he  brought  me  a  fairin' — a  roll  of  pale  brown 
ribbon.  It  mattered  not  that  the  poor  umbrella  was  dark  maroon ; 
we  sewed  strips  of  ribbon  down  each  seam,  and  little  patches  of 
ribbon  under  every  tear,  and  when  our  masterpiece  was  finished,  it 
not  only  defied  wind  and  rain,  but  was  the  admiration  of  all  be- 
holders— ^nay,  more;  it  proved  a  fruitful  topic  of  conversation, 
which  is  no  mean  praise  in  these  parts  I 

Events  were  few  and  far  between.  In  three  weeks  about  three 
drowned  tourists  arrived  from  Portree  vid  the  Storr — pedestrians, 
of  course — and  one  day,  while  I  sat  painting  on  the  shore,  a  very 
large  English  yacht  came  in,  with  a  steam-tug  to  take  care  of  her. 
The  owner  having  packed  as  many  of  his  party  as  could  find  room, 
into  "  the  cart,''  went  off  to  Quiraing.  I  was  much  amused  at 
noting  the  difference  between  the  English  sailors  who  manned  this 
yacht  and  those  we  had  had  to  do  with.  The  latter  were  grave 
thoughtful  men,  content  with  the  simplest  fare,  biscuit,  herrings, 
and  milk,  and  appreciating  the  beauty  of  scenery  as  much  as  we  did 
ourselves.  These,  like  a  pack  of  wild  boys,  were  intent  only  on  the 
fun  of  foraging,  and  capturing  sheep,  fowls,  eggs,  whatever  they 
could  lay  hands  on,  and  their  verdict  on  each  place  where  they  had 
halted  was  solely  dependent  on  the  commissariat. 

Then  I  began  to  realize  how  curiously  this  contrast  must  have 
struck  the  frugal  old  Highlanders,  when  first  the  Saxons  came 
among  them,  and  the  grim  humour  that  prompted  their  retort  to 
some  English  taunt — ^a  retort  which  became  proverbial — "  Show  me 
a  Southron,  and  I  will  show  you  a  glutton ! ''  Far  be  it  from  me 
to  apply  such  a  term  to  these  jolly  tars. 

Nevertheless,  not  one  of  them  gave  a  glance  at  the  strange  scene 
their  master  had  come  so  far  to  look  at,  though  they  found  con- 
siderable amusement  in  watching  my  sketch  of  it.  Three  months 
later,  when  I  embarked  for  India  at  Southampton,  a  cheery  voice 
wished  me  luck,  and  that  I  might  get  good  drawings,  and  looking 
up,  I  recognized  one  of  these  hearties,  who  took  a  special  interest 
in  my  comfort  throughout  the  voyage. 

When  the  time  came  that  I  must  bid  adieu  to  Quiraing,  my 
friends  at  Uig,  true  to  the  good  old  precept,  *'  Welcome  the  coming, 

D  D 


402  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

Speed  the  parting,  guest/'  escorted  me  as  far  as  Portree.  Mj  next 
halting-point  was  Sligachan  Inn,  which  stands  on  the  borders  of 
Lord  Macdonald's  deer  forest  of  Sconser. 

The  drive  from  Portree  to  Sligachan  was  over  a  heathery  moor, 
a  broad  expanse  of  rich  browns  and  purples,  with  patches  of  vivid 
green,  or  dark  moss  with  darker  peat  stacks  ready  cut  for  winter 
fuel.  Here  and  there  a  broken  sea-bank,  and  a  rippling  stream ; 
and  beyond,  an  ever-changing  outline  of  line  mountain  forms,  just 
appearing  through  the  mist,  then  vanishing  again. 

The  inn,  though  small,  is  comfortable  enough,  and  affords  shelter 
to  a  wondrously  varied  multitude  of  tourists  and  travellers,  mem- 
bers of  the  Alpine  Club,  distinguished  artists,  statesmen,  ecclesi- 
astics, botanists,  geologists,  yachting  parties,  pleasure -seekers  of  all 
sorts,  drovers,  excisemen,  down  to  that  class  of  tourist  who  "  does  " 
Skye  as  a  sort  of  unpleasant  duty,  and  confides  to  his  friend  ^  'ow 
hawfully  the  'orses  gibbed  coming  up  these  'ideous,  'orrible  'ills,*' 
adding  that  if  only  Nature  had  ''put  all  the  'ills  into  the  'ollows,  it 
would  have  been  a  much  finer  country."  ^  Also  giving  him  startling 
information  of  all  sorts,  such  as  that  ''  A  gwilse  is  the  female  of  a 
gwouse,"  and  making,  oh  !  such  havoc  of  all  local  names. 

One  of  these  southern  gentlemen,  whose  presence  had  only  been 
remarked  by  his  excessive  silence,  suddenly  electrified  his  neigh- 
bours by  springing  wildly  towards  the  window,  exclaiming,  "  There 
they  are  1  There  they  are  I  Don't  you  see  the  red-deer  1'*  at  the 
same  time  pointing  out  a  couple  of  collie  dogs  which  were  quietly 
surveying  the  world  from  the  brow  of  the  hill.  After  this  failure 
the  unhappy  man  once  more  relapsed  into  silence,  and  made  no 
further  attempt  to  enliven  the  public. 

But  none  of  these  conveyed  to  our  ears  so  curious  a  sensation  as 
when  a  pretty  young  woman,  who  had  been  listening  in  much 
bewilderment  to  a  discussion  about  Oban,  suddenly  looked  up,  and 
with  an  expression  of  beaming  intelligence,  exclaimed,  "  Well,  to 
be  sure !  Why,  I  thought  you  were  talking  of  Oban  in  London ! " 
Judge  of  our  first  feelings  of  mystification,  and  congratulate  us  on 

1  This  remark  really  wa$  made  to  my  father  !  himself  a  devout  worshipper 
of  beautiful  scenery. 


BURN — BOURNE — BROOK.  403 

our  command  of  countenance,  in  that,  as  a  vision  of  Holbom  Hill 
slowly  presented  itself  to  our  minds,  we  contrived  not  to  move  a 
muscle  I  ^ 

But  though  we  take  our  quiet  laugh  at  the  Sassenach,  perhaps 
he,  in  his  turn,  may  find  his  little  joke  at  the  expense  of  some  of 
our  northern  worthies,  and  may  treasure  up  such  speeches  as  that 
of  a  certain  drover,  who,  moved  with  indignation  at  finding  himself 
supplied  with  a  dessert-spoon  at  second-course,  shouted  to  the 
damsel  in  waiting  to  bring  back  his  soup-spoon,  exclaiming,  **  Hoot  I 
lassie,  isna  ma  mouth  just  as  big  for  pudding  as  for  kail  1  ** 

Many  a  good  story  has  been  told  under  that  roof,  and  many  a 
queer  long-winded  discussion  of  every  topic  under  heaven,  over- 
heard, with  more  or  less  amusement,  by  people  who,  accustomed 
always  to  go  on  trotting  round  and  round  their  own  social  cabbage- 
leaf,  here  catch  perhaps  the  only  glimpse  they  ever  get  of  the 
existence  of  their  fellows,  whose  diverse  caste  has  run  them,  like- 
wise, into  their  several  grooves.  Here,  however,  for  once,  they  do 
just  meet,  and  bring  with  them  enough  of  their  own  individuality 
to  make  them  amusing  studies  for  one  another. 

^  Nevertheless  she  was  probably  nearer  right  than  ourselves,  inasmuch  as 
Dean  Stanley  tells  us  that  Holbom,  like  Hay  Hill,  owes  its  initiatory  H  to 
sheer  Cockneyism ;  the  latter  denoting  the  hill  where  the  Aye  Brook  once 
flowed,  while  the  former  takes  its  name  from  the  Old  Bourne  (the  ancient 
river),  which,  rising  in  High  Holbom,  formerly  ran  down  that  green  hillside. 
Its  once  clear  waters,  like  those  of  all  the  neighbouring  streamlets,  have  now 
been  imprisoned  and  sentenced  to  hard  labour  underground,  in  purifying 
sewers. 

The  Dean  also  quotes  the  suggestive  names  of  Langboume  (the  long  stream), 
Tyburn  (The  Aye  Boume),  Mary-le-bone  (from  St.  Mary  le  Bourne),  South- 
borne,  and  Sharebome  as  reminders  of  the  early  days  when  these  shares,  or 
small  rills,  flowed  through  peaceful  meadows  ;  and  when  ships  came  up  to  Old 
Boume  Bridge,  pausing  on  their  way  at  Fleet  Bridge ;  strange  vision  of  a 
time  when  the  fleets  or  swift  brook,  flowed  (a  silent  highway)  where  now  the 
stream  of  busy  life  surges  so  noisily,  with  ceaseless  roar. 

Apart  from  this  curious  change  in  London's  geography  (above-ground  at 
least),  it  is  interesting  to  remember  that  our  own  Scotch  name  for  a  brook,  a 
burn,  has  so  near  a  relationship  to  old  English—though  I  doubt  whether 
many  modem  Britons  ever  think  of  a  river,  in  connection  with  "  the  bourne 
whence  no  traveller  returns." 

D  D  2 


404  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

And  of  all  this,  you  get  full  benefit,  as  the  little  inn  boosts  of 
only  one  private  sitting-room,  and  the  occupant  thereof  is  con- 
sidered by  the  other  inmates  exclusive  indeed.  I  for  one,  had 
been  so  long  alone  with  the  Rocks  and  the  Peggy  M5r,  that  I  was 
not  disposed  to  shun  my  species  !  Moreover,  I  was  fortunate  enough 
to  fall  in  with  thoroughly  pleasant  companions,  who,  arriving  on 
the  same  day  as  myself,  were  likewise  in  no  hurry  to  leave  so 
beautiful  a  spot.  So  we  formed  ourselves  into  a  most  agreeable 
coterie,  and  found  abundant  pleasure,  social  and  scenic,  during  the 
three  happy  weeks  we  spent  beneath  the  shadow  of  the  dark 
Cuchullins.^ 

Of  those  kindly  companions,  one,  alas!  may  never  more  tread 
mountain  crag.  Ere  two  summers  had  passed,  during  which  he 
had  scaled  many  a  cloud-capped  summit,  he  met  his  fate  suddenly, 
as  he  had  always  himself  predicted.  Wandering  alone  on  the 
Maritime  Alps,  a  falling  mass  of  rock  struck  and  killed  him  in  a 
moment.  Some  peasants  brought  tidings  to  Mentone  of  the  death 
of  an  unknown  Englishman,  and  after  a  while  it  was  known  that 
this  was  our  friend  of  the  CuchuUins,  and  that  yet  another  of  the 
companions  of  these  two  short  years  had  passed  away  from  earth. 

The  inn  stands  on  a  flat  peat  moss,  just  where  a  brown  trout- 
stream  flows  down  Glen  Sligachan  into  a  salt  sea-lake  of  the  same 
name.^  To  the  right  of  the  valley  towers  the  mass  of  dark  peaks, 
eight  of  which  are  upwards  of  3000  feet  in  height  Of  these, 
Scuir-na-Gillean,  or  the  gillie's  hill,  claims  precedence.  It  earned 
its  name  in  remote  ages  from  a  legend  that  two  lads  had  been 
killed  while  attempting  to  scale  its  dark  crags,  and  till  yery 
recently  its  summit  was  deemed  inaccessible.  Even  to  the  moat 
experienced  cragsman  the  ascent  is  no  child's  play,  as  has  been 
recently  but  too  well  proven,  when  a  member  of  the  Alpine  Club 
met  his  death  alone  among  these  cruel  black  rocks,  his  body  being 
found  next  day  at  the  foot  of  a  precipice. 

On  the  other  side  of  the  valley  rises  a  ninth  peak  of  similar 
height  (Blabhein,  pronounced  Blaven),  also  of  a  greenish  black 

»  "  Cuchullin."    Pronounce  "  Coolin." 
'  See  illustration  to  Chapter  lY. 


MOUNTAINS  IN  SKYE.  405 

hyperstenite  rock,  known  to  geologists  as  "  Gabbro,"  its  strangely 
serrated  outline  cutting  hard  against  the  sky,  and  its  solemn  gloom, 
like  that  of  its  dark  kindred,  generally  intensified  by  the  deep  cloud 
shadows  resting  on  its  summit. 

Against  it,  in  strong  relief,  stands  Marskow,  one  of  a  group  of 
conical  hills  of  red  syenite  and  porphyry,  whose  steep  sides  are 
water-worn  by  the  torrents  (true  children  of  the  storm)  that  rush 
down  literally  from  the  clouds.  These  red  hills  seem  like  huge 
piles  of  disintegrated  rock,  pale  flesh  colour,  more  curious  than 
beautiful,  though  a  brilliant  green  herbage  has  managed  to  creep 
up  the  lower  slopes,  and  glances  with  rainbow  light  when  touched 
by  that  "clear  shining  after  rain"  with  which  dwellers  in  a  hill 
country  become  so  familiar.  Their  rounded  forms  (singularly  free 
from  any  deep  glens  or  defined  crags)  are  in  curious  contrast  with 
the  deeply-furrowed  ravines  and  corries  which  seam  the  dark 
massive  pyramids  of  black  rock  that  tower  on  either  side  of  the 
valley. 

Another  of  these  pink  hills  bears  the  name  of  Glamaig,  whose 
shoulder,  Scuir-na-Mairi,  or  the  crag  of  Mary,  was  so  called  in 
memory  of  a  woman  who  was  there  killed  in  attempting  to  rescue 
her  cow. 

At  the  head  of  the  valley  stands  one  cone  whose  name,  Trodhu, 
recalls  the  days  when  the  old  Norsemen  overran  the  land,  and 
left  traces  of  their  presence  all  along  the  coast  Such  names  as 
Skeabost,  Orbost,  Kirkabost,  Hushibost,  Bornaskitag,  Hungladder, 
Valtos^  and  many  another  seem  to  carry  us  north  to  Scandinavian 
shores. 

For  this  cone  of  Trodhu  you  must  make,  if  you  wish  to  look 
down  on  the  far-famed  Loch  Corruisk  (literally  "  the  Corrie  of  the 
water ").  Three  hours*  good  walking  or  pony -riding  should  take 
you  up  beautiful  Glen  Sligachan^  and  by  a  steep  ascent  to  the 
shoulder  of  Trodhu,  whence  the  view  on  a  clear  day  is  magnificent. 
Wild  hills  rise  high  on  every  side  of  you,  their  dark  rocky  crests 
half  veiled  by  wreaths  of  floating  mist.  Far  below  you  lies  black 
Loch  Duich,  a  small,  intensely  dark  pool,  often  called  the  Dhu 
Lochan,  i.  e.  the  black  Tarn. 


406  IN   THE  HEBRIDES. 

It  is  connected  by  a  streamlet  with  blacker  Corruisk,  whence  a 
river,  perhaps  a  quarter  of  a  mile  long,  rushes  down  the  rocks  into 
Loch  Scavaig,  the  most  exquisitely  transparent  green  sea-loch,  on 
whose  calm  surface  is  mirrored  a  dazzlingly  white  waterfall,  that 
comes  tumbling  over  the  crags.  The  contrast  in  colour  between 
these  lochs  is  most  striking ;  the  fresh  water  so  sombre,  like  darkest 
indigo — the  salt  water  "so  wondrously  green.  On  the  latter  float  a 
few  brown  and  red  specks,  veiled  with  the  faintest  thread  of  blue 
smoke,  which  tells  that  the  fishers  have  kindled  fires  on  board  their 
boats,  and  are  cooking  their  midday  meal  of  fresh  herrings.  A 
little  apart  from  these,  flutters  a  tiny  white  sail  no  bigger  than  a 
fairy's  wing,  which  proves  to  be  a  yacht  just  anchoring  in  the  bay. 
And  beyond  Loch  Scavaig  lies  the  great  blue  sea,  from  which  rise 
the  shapely  hills  of  Bum,  and  the  lower  shores  of  Canna  and  other 
isles. 

Beautiful,  however,  as  is  such  a  day  of  glorious  sunshine,  when 
we  feel  the  mere  fact  of  existence  to  be  bliss  unspeakable,  there  is 
no  denying  that  fine  dry  weather  is  certainly  not  the  time  to  see 
these  hills  in  their  glory.  We  thought  ourselves  singularly 
fortunate  in  having  selected  a  perfect  day  for  our  first  visit  to  the 
corrie  of  the  waters,  little  thinking  how  a  few  days  of  sunshine 
would  inevitably  have  parched  and  scorched  the  rocks,  and  dried 
up  every  trickling  stream  and  tiny  waterfall.  We  started,  having 
our  minds  thoroughly  imbued  with  Scott's  description  of  this  scene, 
"  so  rude,  so  wild, — ^yet  so  sublime  in  barrenness  " ;  where 


"  .  .  all  is  rock  at  random  thrown, 
Bla€k  waves,  bare  roc^,  and  banks  of  stone.'' 

At  the  summit  of  the  ridge  below  Trodhu  we  paused,  breathless 
with  delight  at  the  glory  of  the  panorama  outspread  before  us. 
There,  as  is  customary,  we  turned  the  ponies  loose,  an  amount  of 
trust  which  these  wise  creatures  never  betray.  This  done,  we 
started  for  a  long  and  fatiguing  scramble  down  the  steep  hillside, 
fairly  awed  by  our  solemn  expectations,  which  intensified  as  we 
neared  the  ridge  whence  we  uught  overlook  those  black  mysterious 
waters. 


LOCH  CORRUISK.  407 

Once  there !  ....  0  bitter  disappointment !  This  weird  and 
wonderful  scene,  of  whose  barren  grandeur  we  had  read  such 
descriptions  in  poetry  and  prose — and  had  seen  such  exaggerated 
pictures,  beginning  with  Turner's  far-famed  drawing,  where  over- 
hanging cliffs  are  shovm  overshadowing  the  black  water;  is  this 
Gomiisk  1  This  the  peerless  loch  whose  stillness  and  solitude  poets 
have  sung,  as  though  no  other  spot  of  earth  could  show  such 
leaden-hued  waters,  embosomed  in  such  a  wilderness  of  ragged 
rock  mountains,  whose  black  pinnacles  seem  to  pierce  the  heavens, 
towering  far  above  the  masses  of  floating  clouds  which  for  ever 
hang  around  their  summits  t  We  looked  for  such  grim  solemnity 
as  should  befit  the  chosen  home  of  Spirit-Giants,  and  we  beheld 
only  a  little  dark  tarn,  with  grassy  shore,  surrounded  by  hills — 
very  steep  cert  linly,  but  not  very  impressive,  and  all  of  much  the 
same  height,  running  in  a  slightly  jagged  line  across  a  cloudless 
blue  sky ;  while  every  detail  of  arid  rock  and  every  tuft  of  grass 
stood  out  clearly  revealed  in  the  calm  sunshine.  Not  a  wreath  of 
friendly  mist  was  there  to  lend  mystery  to  the  scene,  but  far  up  the 
valley  a  party  of  odious  tourists  were  making  the  sad  hills  echo 
their  vulgar  shouts ! 

We  stood  mute  with  disappointment — and  if  we  had  not  been 
too  tired,  I  think  we  should  have  gone  straight  back  to  the  brow  of 
the  hill.  However,  by  degrees  a  few  clouds  stole  up,  and  some 
hill-tops  were  partially  veiled,  and  dark  crags  stood  out  in  relief — 
and  as  the  sun  moved  westward,  long  shadows  from  the  great 
rocks  fell  athwart  the  weary  land.  The  shouting  snobs  were  gone, 
and  nature's  still  small  voice  spoke  for  herself. 

Then  we  began  to  realize  what  that  scene  might  be,  under  dark 
effects  of  storm  and  thunder — at  the  outgoings  of  morning  and 
evening — or  in  the  clear  starlight.  So  we  determined  to  come 
back,  and  try  a  second  impression.  And  the  second  led  to  a  third ; 
and  the  third  to  a  fourth  ;  and  the  oftener  we  went,  the  better  we 
loved  that  wild  ride  through  Glen  Sligachan,  and  the  dark  valley 
where  the  deep,  blue-black  tarns  gleam  like  black  diamonds  beside 
the  emerald  sea-loch.  Often  we  halted,  just  to  listen  to  the  intensely 
solemn  silence,  broken  only  by  faint  whispers  of  the  breeze  that 


408  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

just  fanned  the  light  mists  in  the  corries,  or  the  rippling  murmur 
of  the  quiet  brooklet,  as  it  flashed  here  and  there  in  the  sunlight 
And  sometimes  when  a  jarring  human  voice  rang  harshly  in  our 
ears,  disturbing  those  perfect  harmonies,  we  did  feel — oh,  such 
sympathy ! — with  the  grand  old  Indians,  who  believed  that  the 
lonely  stillness  of  their  tranquil  lakes  was  especially  sacred  to  the 
Great  Spirit,  and  that  His  wrath  would  sink  the  canoe  of  any  rash 
mortal  who  dared  to  lift  up  his  voice  while  on  the  waters. 

Once  in  the  days  of  the  early  settlers,  a  white  woman  had 
occasion  to  cross  Xake  Saratoga,  and  the  Indians,  ere  they  started, 
warned  her  of  the  danger  that  one  rash  word  might  bring.  It  was 
a  calm,  cloudless  sky,  and  the  canoe  sped  like  an  arrow  athwart 
the  smooth  waters.  Suddenly,  when  in  the  middle  of  the  lake,  the 
strong-minded  woman  determined  to  prove  to  these  simple  folk 
the  folly  of  their  belief.  So,  like  the  shouting  snobs  of  Gomiisk, 
she  lifted  up  her  voice  in  a  wild  cry  that  woke  every  echo  of  the 
hills.  The  Indians  were  filled  with  consternation.  They  uttered 
no  word,  but  straining  every  nerve,  rowed  on  in  frowning  silence. 
They  reached  the  shore  in  safety,  and  the  soul-less  wom&u 
triumphed.  Bub  the  Mohawk  chief  looked  upon  her  with  scorn. 
**  The  Great  Spirit  is  merciful,"  he  said.  "  He  knows  that  the 
white  woman  cannot  hold  her  peace  !  '* 

The  apparent  size  of  the  corrie  is  strangely  deceptive.  It  ia 
almost  impossible  to  'make  the  eye  realize  that  the  loch  can  be  a 
mile  in  length ;  and  yet  we  know  that  it  is  nearly  four,  and  that  a 
grassy  valley  lies  at  the  further  end,  where  the  black  rocks  seem  to 
close  in  so  precipitously.  Well  do  the  red  deer  know  how  to  prize 
that  oasis  in  the  rock-wilderness — truly  green  pastures  beside  still 
waters.  Yet  not  even  here  does  "  the  antlered  monarch  of  the 
waste"  reign  in  peace.  Once,  at  least,  this  little  glen  was  the 
scene  of  as  good  a  day's  sport  as  ever  fell  to  the  lot  of  solitary 
stalker.^ 

It  was  before  the  days  of  cartridges  and  breechloaders,  when 
men  were  liable  to  have  their  sport  spoilt  and  their  tempers  ruffled 
by  the  failure  of  a  damp  cap.    In  the  present  instance,  the  irritating 

^  The  late  Loid  Middletoii. 


LEGEND  OF  LOCH  SCAVAIG.  409 

cause  was  the  lack  of  that  small  essential ;  for,  after  a  long  and 
tiring  walk  across  the  hills,  the  sportsman  suddenly  bethought  him 
that  he  had  forgotten  to  replenish  his  store.  In  vain  were  his 
pockets  turned  out,  in  hopes  of  finding  hidden  treasure  in  some 
corner.  All  his  search  only  produced  five  caps ;  short  allowance, 
you  must  confess,  with  which  to  start  on  a  long  day's  stalking. 
However,  he  pushed  on,  and  made  for  the  head  of  Corruisk. 
Judge  of  his  dismay  when  he  beheld  five  stags  quietly  feeding  by 
the  stream  that  trickles  through  the  green  valley !  All  through 
the  long  day  he  stalked  them,  one  by  one ;  and  at  midniglit 
returned  home,  with  one  cap  in  his  pocket,  having  bagged  the  four 
fine  heads,  each  with  a  single  shot,  while  the  fifth  was  so  poor  as 
not  to  be  worth  having.  Next  day  the  foresters  went  in  search  of 
their  prizes,  and  found  them  in  spots  so  inaccessible,  that  they 
had  to  cut  them  up  where  they  lay,  and  bring  them  down 
piecemeal,  as  no  pony  could  possibly  carry  such  a  burden  on  such 
ground. 

But  if  the  Corrie  of  the  Waters  has  thus  its  tale  to  tell  of  the 
kingly  red  deer,  Loch  Scavaig  has  older  legends  of  the  days  when 
its  shores  were  haunted  by  fierce  wild  boars.  On  the  edge  of  the 
loch  there  is  a  cave  wherein  the  chief  of  the  Mackinnons  once 
found  shelter  when  separated  from  his  followers  by  the  luck  of  the 
chase.  He  kindled  a  fire,  and  proceeded  to  cook  some  of  his 
veoison  on  the  embers.  In  one  hand  he  held  a  large  bone,  off 
which  he  was  cutting  slices  ready  for  dressing,  when  a  rustle  on 
the  dry  sea-weed  in  the  mouth  of  the  cave  made  him  look  up  to 
see  a  dark  creature  rushing  at  him  with  gaping  jaws  and  wicked 
tasks.  He  recognized  a  savage  wild  boar,  and,  having  no  choice 
between  absence  of  body  and  presence  of  mind,  he  made  good  use 
of  the  latter. 

Holding  the  bone  upright  in  his  hand,  he  awaited  the  charge  of 
the  grizzly  brute,  and 'dashed  his  arm  down  its  throat,  the  cross- 
bone,  of  course,  holding  the  terrible  jaws  open,  and  leaving  him 
full  time  to  despatch  the  foe  with  his  hunting-knife.  To  this  feat 
the  Mackinnons  of  the  present  day  owe  their  crest,  which  is  a 
boards  head,  open-mouthed — apparently  choked  by  a  great  bone. 


410  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

This  description  of  his  catting  slices  ready  for  dressing,  points 
to  a  common  manner  of  preparing  food  in  those  "wild  days  by 
simply  squeezing  the  meat  between  two  flat  stones,  or  two  battens 
of  wood  till  all  the  blood  was  forced  out.  Of  course  there  were 
many  cases  when  kindling  a  fire  would  have  been  inconvenient, 
and  when  its  smoke  would  have  betrayed  the  presence  of  one  who 
sought  concealment,"  whereas  this  told  no  tales,  and  involved  no 
tedious  process  of  kindling  with  flint  and  steel. 

This  story  of  Mackinnon's  crest  must  remind  Oxonians  of  the 
kindred  legend  telling  how  a  student  of  Queen's  College  was 
wandering  in  Shotover  Wood,  and  reading  a  volume  of  Aristotle, 
when  a  fierce  wDd  boar  charged  him  open-mouthed.  The  electrified 
student  had  no  alternative  but  to  thrust  Aristotle  down  the  boar's 
throat,  which  most  effectually  choked  him ;  in  memory  of  which 
exploit,  the  boar's  head,  borne  into  hall  with  all  due  pomp,  still 
graces  the  Christmas  dinner  at  Queen's. 

In  recent  times.  Loch  Scavaig  rarely  knows  any  excitement 
greater  than  a  visit  from  a  shoal  of  herrings,  or  an  occasional  yacht. 
Seven  years  ago,  however,  a  great  event  occurred  !  A  whale,  sixty 
feet  long,  swam  unsuspiciously ^right  up  the  loch,  and  there  found 
himself  so  entangled  and  perplexed  by  the  great  black  rocks,  that 
he  ran  right  ashore,  and  for  two  whole  days  wriggled  -and  flopped 
about  in  the  vain  struggle  to  escape,  lashing  the  sea  and  overturn- 
ing huge  stones  in  his  despair,  and  all  the  time  roaring  (so  say 
the  fishers)  like  an  enraged  bull,  awakening  the  ghostly  echoes  of 
dark  Corruisk,  and  disturbing  the  Sabbath  calm  of  its  misty 
mountains. 

Not  till  the  third  day  did  the  poor  brute'cease  to  battle  with  his 
rocky  prison,  when  he  was  espied  by  an  amazed  English  tourist, 
who  forthwith  swam  to  the  spot  and  climbed  on  to  the  whale's 
back,  whence  he  was  shaken  off  by  its  last  dying  struggle.  Then 
the  natives  assembled,  and  having  finally  despatched  him,  set  to 
work  in  a  fever  of  excitement  to  carry  off  the  blubber  from  this 
heaven-sent  prize.  Small  indeed  was  the  portion  of  this  royal  fish 
that  was  left  for  Her  Majesty,  but  many  a  lowly  home  was 
gladdened  through  the  winter  nights  by  the  unwonted  supply  of 


ERRATIC  BOULDERS.  411 

oil,  although  so  vast  a  quantity  was  suffered  to  escape,  that  the 
trouhled  sea  all  round  ivas  smoothed  and  calmed  for  many  days. 
It  was  long  enough  after  this  dissection,  hefore  any  one  gifted 
with  a  sense  of  smell  could  again  venture  near  that  heautif  ul  sea 
loch! 

One  very  striking  geological  feature  of  this  district  is  the  pre- 
valence of  the  class  of  rocks  known  to  Alpine  travellers  as  rochea 
moutonnies  and  blocs  jiercheSy  that  is  to  say,  long  swelling  surfaces 
of  bare,  granulated  rock,  in  form  like  the  outline  of  a  great  stranded 
whale,  whereon  lie  poised  huge  detached  boulders  of  rock  of  totally 
different  formation.  These  vast  rounded  slopes  of  gritty  chocolate- 
coloured  sandstone  are  almost  always  quite  bare,  even  the  kindly 
lichen  failing  to  obtain  a  resting-place  thereon. 

All  along  the  margin  of  the  lakes,  and  indeed  everywhere  on 
the  lower  slopes  of  these  hills,  these  rounded  red  masses  appear, 
invariably  lying  in  a  transverse  position  to  the  general  direction 
of  the  valley ;  telling  of  a  time,  far  hidden  in  the  remotest  mist  of 
ages,  when  mighty  glaciers  lodged  in  every  ravine  of  those  dark 
mountain  ranges,  and  thence  slowly  descended  to  the  valleys  with 
sure  though  imperceptible  progress — grinding  and  smoothing  the 
rugged  rocks  as  they  passed  over  them,  and  bearing  on  their  cold 
ice-waves  huge  boulders  of  fallen  rock,  weighing  perhaps  fifty  tons 
or  more.  Many  such  still  lie  in  the  valleys;  gigantic  masses 
which,  from  their  formation,  must  evidently  have  been  carried 
hither  from  far-distant  points.  These  boulders,  of  every  size,  from 
the  least  to  the  greatest,  lie  scattered  in  every  glen,  as  though  the 
giants  of  the  mountain  had  been  pelting  their  pigmy  foes  in  the 
lower  world. 

Constantly  we  find  these  erratic  blocks  perched  on  the  very 
edge  of  the  rounded  rock,  as  though  the  ice-wave  had  had  no 
power  to  carry  them  further;  and  so  ever  since,  through  the 
storms  and  hurricanes  of  centuries  untold,  they  have  remained 
there,  poised,  as  if  waiting  for  some  new  motive  force  to  send  them 
crashing  down  the  hill. 

Although  the  action  of  the  glaciers  has  planed  these  swelling 
forms  to  such  apparent  smoothness,  you  need  but  step  upon  them 


412  m  TUE  HEBRIDES. 

to  find  that  they  are  in  truth  all  grooved  with  continuous  minute 
lines ;  the  result  of  which  is,  that  so  far  from  being  slippery,  they 
are  in  reality  so  rough  to  the  foot  as  to  afford  a  perfectly  secure  bold, 
and  a  most  agreeable  surface  on  which  to  walk.  A  few  days  after 
returning  to  the  mainland,  I  heard  the  Archbishop  of  York  make 
very  striking  reference  to  these  glacial  marks,  as  illustrating  the 
gradual  moulding  of  human  character  and  the  ineffaceable  traces  of 
daily  life  on  the  far  distant  future;  and  straightway  there  rose 
before  me  a  vision  of  Corruisk  in  antediluvian  days  ! 

Strange  indeed  are  the  pictures  that  suggest  themselves  when, 
from  time  to  time.  Mother  Earth  reveals  to  us  hints  of  the  mar- 
vellous geological  changes  through  which,  in  her  long  life,  she  has 
had  to  pass.  Phases  of  poverty  and  of  wealth,  of  burning  heat 
and  bitter  cold.  Imagine  days  when  British  coal-fields  were  forests 
of  waving  palms  and  giant  tree-ferns,  rich  and  beautiful  as  a  tropical 
jungle.  Days,  too,  when  these  isles  were  peopled  with  such 
monstrous  reptiles  as  those  which  haunt  the  dreams  of  our  children, 
after  a  day  at  the  Crystal  Palace— creatures  whose  remains  have 
been  found  even  on  yonder  blue  Isle  of  Eigg. 

Not  that  the  reptiles  had  it  all  to  themselves.  Gigantic  elephants 
and  kindred  creatures  roamed  through  the  forests  and  there  left 
their  bones,  which,  after  counties^  ages,  have  been  dug  up  in  the 
streets  of  London  and  of  Oxford  by  puny  bipeds,  who  little  dreamt 
that  they  had  built  their  cities  on  the  very  site  of  the  great 
mammoth  cemeteries. 

Poor  Mother  Earth  suggests  far  more  sudden  alternations  of  heat 
and  cold  in  her  northern  regions,  where  not  only  are  the  perfectly- 
preserved  carcases  of  woolly  elephants  found  embedded  in  the  ice- 
cliffs,  but  huge  buried  forests,  such  as  those  in  North  Greeidand, 
where  now  no  shrub  can  brave  the  cold,  but  where,  in  the  very 
heart  of  the  glaciers,  fir-trees,  oaks,  elms,  laurels,  plantains,  and 
magnolias  have  been  dug  up — not  their  branches  and  trunks  only, 
but  even  leaves  and  cones,  all  perfectly  preserved.  It  seems  as  if 
Greenland  and  Siberia  are  now  passing  through  the  same  course 
of  treatment  to  which  Britain  was  subjected  so  many  ages  ago ; 
possibly  their  shores  may  some  day  be  considered  as  the  temperate 


LEGENDS  OF  CLAN  FEUDS.  413 

zone,  when  oar  isles  have  attained  some  condition  as  yet  undreamt 
of! 

Sometimes  we  varied  our  route  up  Glen  Sligachan  bj  invading 
the  Hart  o*  Corrie,  a  deep,  dark  gorge  running  into  the  very  heart 
of  the  Cuchullins,  which  rise  on  every  side  in  mighty  crags — ash- 
coloured,  seamed  with  a  green  mineral  that  is  well-nigh  black,  and 
streaked  with  tremulous  lines  of  white,  that  tell  of  rushing  waters. 

No  sound  of  living  thing  is  there,  save  the  cry  of  the  muir-fowl 
startled  by  our  approach  from  their  sanctuary  in  the  rich  blossom- 
ing heather;  yet  there  was  once  an  awesome  night  when  these 
rocks  echoed  the  shouts  of  warriors,  and  the  cries  of  the  dying ; 
and  a  great  boulder  of  red  rock,  known  as  "  the  Bloody  Stane," 
still  marks  the  spot  where  *a  fierce  battle  was  fought  by  the  Mac- 
Allisters,  the  Macdonalds,  and  the  MacLeods,  whose  lands  still 
meet  at  this  very  spot,  so  each  clan  buried  its  dead  on  its  own 
ground*  This  it  is  which  makes  the  place  so  eerie  in  the  moon- 
light, for,  as  every  Highlander  knows,  the  fairies  fashion  their  bows 
and  arrows  from  the  ribs  of  men  buried  where  the  lands  of  three 
lairds  meet. 

Many  a  fierce  clan-feud  have  these  silent  hills  witnessed,  as 
some  still  testify  by  the  names  they  bear.  Thus  one  dark  spur 
overhanging  Corruisk  is  known  as  Strona  Stree,  or  the  Hill  of 
Strife,  the  possession  of  its  bare  and  rugged  crags  having  been 
hotly  contested  by  jealous  chiefs.  And  at  the  back  of  this  range 
lies  the  Corry-na-Criech,  or  Corry  of  the  Fight,  a  deep,  dark  gorge, 
where  the  MacLeods  surprised  the  Macdonalds  in  the  act  of  divid- 
ing the  spoil  gathered  in  a  foray  on  their  own  homes.  Then  fol- 
lowed quick  revenge,  and  the  red  rocks  were  dyed  of  a  deeper  hue 
with  the  life-blood  of  many  a  sturdy  clansman. 

In  some  of  the  marshy  pools  in  these  valleys  we  found  a  very 
rare,  but  very  ugly  plant  growing  abundantly,  namely,  the  jointed 
pipewort,^  so  called  because  of  its  stalk  being  jointed  and  set  at 
seven  or  eight  angles;  its  roots  are  coral-like.  The  plant  is  in- 
digenous to  North  America,  and  its  only  British  homes  are  at  this 
spot^  the  neighbouring  Isle  of  Coll,  and  a  few  small  islets  near. 

>  The  Eriocaulan  tqplangtUare. 


414  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

It  is  also  found  at  Connemara  in  Ireland.  To  botanists  its  rarity 
makes  its  existence  here  a  point  of  considerable  interest,  otherwise 
its  insignificance  would  fail  to  attract  notice. 

The  expeditions  to  Corruisk  always  involved  a  stiff  day's  work, 
generally  of  twelve  hours,  of  wliich  eight  were  spent  on  the  road, 
going  and  returning.  Moreover,  it  was  such  a  road  as  was  not 
pleasant  after  dusk,  even  for  such  sure-footed  ponies  as  those  we 
rode,  so  that  we  always  had  reluctantly  to  leave  off  work  just  when 
the  lights  were  most  beautiful;  and  our  faithful,  sturdy  gillie, 
Donald,  took  good  care  that  we  should  not  outstay  what  he  con- 
sidered the  right  time.  The  height  of  artistic  pleasure  would  be  to 
visit  Corruisk  with  such  a  tent  as  that  in  which  I  spent  the  follow- 
ing summer,  amid  loftier,  but  scarcely  niore  beautiful  mountains.^ 

Our  homeward  ride  was  always  a  delight,  as  we  watched  every 
changing  effect  of  sunset  and  gloaming  pass  over  beautiful  Blaven 
and  its  dark  brethren.  There  was  something  eerie  in  the  com- 
panionship of  our  own  shadows,  lying  right  across  the  valley,  on 
the  opposite  hillside,  as  if  some  silent  Spirit  of  the  Mountain  were 
haunting  our  footsteps.  Sometimes  they  fell  far  below  us,  and 
rested  in  ghostly  stillness  on  the  white  vapours  that  lay  there, 
hushed  in  deathlike  silence,  motionless  as  **  the  mist  that  sleeps  on 
a  waveless  sea."  And  far  overhead  the  solemn  mountains  towered, 
— the  red  cones  of  Marskow  and  Glamaig,  glowing  ruddier  and 
more  golden  in  the  light  of  the  setting  sun,  and  Blaven  rearing  his 
dark  crest  against  a  pale  green  sky — a  marvellous  confused  mass  of 
crags,  ashy-grey  as  the  heron's  wing,  and  cutting  black  in  strange 
serrated  outline  against  the  clear  frosty  heaven. 

Many  a  time  since  then  have  the  words  of  the  "  city  poet "  * 
come  floating  back  to  my  mind,  with  the  same  great  longing  once 
more  to  return  to  that  beautiful  wild  valley — 

"  0  wonderful  mountain  of  Blaven  ! 
How  oft  since  our  parting  hour 
You  have  roar'd  with  the  wintry  torrents. 
You  have  gloom'd  through  the  thunder-shower. 


The  Himalayas.  '  Alexander  Smith. 


A  VIEW  OF  THE  CUCHULLINS.  415 

0  Blaven,  rocky  Blaven ! 

How  I  long  to  be  with  you  again. 

To  see  lash'd  gulf  and  gully 

Smoke  white  in  the  windy  rain. 

To  see  in  the  scarlet  sunrise 

The  mist-wreaths  perish  with  heat, 

The  wet  rock  slide  with  a  trickling  gleam 

Right  down  to  the  cataract's  feet ; 

While  toward  the  crimson  islands. 

Where  the  sea-birds  flutter  and  skirl,  ^ 

A  cormorant  flaps  o'er  a  sleek  ocean  floor 

Of  tremulous  mother-of-pearl." 

It  was  always  an  amusing  lottery,  on  returning  in  the  evening  to 
the  little  inn,  to  ascertain  who  were  the  fresh  arrivals,  as  many  of 
our  Southern  friends  came  there  for  a  few  days,  and  looked  upon  a 
chance  meeting  in  Skye  much  as  if  we  had  met  in  Kamschatka. 

I  had  been  fortunate  in  securing  a  tiny  attic  which  possessed  the 
only  window  with  a  view  of  the  CuchuUins,  so  I  could  see  them  at 
all  hours  and  seasons,  in  beautiful  moonlight,  and  before  dawn. 
Then  when  I  saw  a  clear  pale  sky,  I  knew  what  was  coming,  and 
went  away  down  the  shore  of  the  little  bay,  to  watch  the  fiery 
finger  touch  the  peaks,  while  their  perfect  image  lay  mirrored  at 
my  feet  in  the  calm  sea-loch.  Gradually  the  fire  spread,  till  the 
whole  mass  gleamed  crimson  in  the  clear  frosty  air,  and  the  cloud- 
less sky  was  a  faint  lemon-colour,  and  deep  purply  shadows  lay  on 
the  brown  peat-moss.  By  the  time  that  all  this  beauty  had  faded 
to  the  "  light  of  common  day,"  it  was  time  to  feel  how  chOling 
was  the  air,  and  turn  breakfastward,  with  some  compassion  for  the 
sleepers,  who  came  so  far  in  search  of  beauty,  and  invariably  missed 
the  cream  of  it 

It  is  only  by  letting  these  varied  aspects  of  the  hills  sink 
through  your  eyes  into  your  imagination,  that  you  really  get  into 
the  spirit  of  the  place,  and  of  those  remote  days  when  CuchuUin 
and  Diarmid,  Ossian  and  Fingal  dwelt  among  these  wilds,  with 
their  beautiful  wives,  and  stalwart  sons  and  daughters,  brave 
vassals  and  trusty  hounds,  whose  adventures  in  chase  and  war 
have  been  the  theme  of  the  islemen  ever  since.     Gradually  they 


416  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

have  taken  colour  from  the  poetic  imaginations  of  a  people  nur- 
tured among  stormy  mountains  and  dreary  moorlands — wild  mists 
and  rocks,  with  wilder  seas  around — the  legends  becoming  more 
and  more  shadowy  and  weird  as  they  were  transmitted  from  one 
generation  to  another,  till  sea-foam  and  drifting  vapour — wraiths 
and  spirits  of  earth,  sea,  and  air,  became  so  interwoven  with  each 
heroic  deed,  and  the  whole  so  magnified  by  the  mists  of  ages,  that 
they  have  taken  the  form  of  dreamy  legends.  Such  legends  as 
those  of  Ossian,  whose  first  appearance  in  the  civilized  world 
occasioned  a  turmoil  among  men  who  had  not  cared  to  note  for 
themselves,  how  the  commonest  story  of  the  present  day  becomes 
fraught  with  poetic  imagery  when  heard  from  the  lips  of  these 
untutored  children  of  the  mist ;  keenly  sensitive  as  they  are  to  all 
spiritual  influences,  whether  of  faith  or  of  mere  superstition.  A 
people,  moreover,  who,  from  the  dawn  of  life,  always  live  more  or 
less  in  memory  of  the  "  steadfast  doom  of  death ; " — whose  chief 
anxiety  is  to  stint  themselves  of  luxuries  during  life,  that  they  may 
provide  fair  linen  for  their  winding-sheet,  and  a  funeral  feast  for 
those  who  shall  carry  them  to  their  grave. 

One  of  the  legends  of  these  Eed  Hills  tells  of  a  strange  burial  on 
one  of  these  misty  summits,  which  bears  the  name  of  Ben-na- 
Cailliach,  the  mountain  of  the  aged  woman.  For,  just  as  the  old 
granite-faced  pyramids  of  the  East  received  the  ashes  of  mighty 
kings,  so  this  great,  bare  pyramid  of  unhewn  red  granite  is  sacred 
to  the  memory  of  an  old  Viking's  daughter,  whose  spirit  could  not 
brook  to  sleep  beneath  green  turf,  so  she  bade  her  people  cany  her 
to  the  top  of  the  mountain  ''  that  she  might  sleep  right  in  the 
pathway  of  the  Norway  wind."  It  was  a  hard  task,  and  a  steep 
and  difficult  ascent,  but  the  command  of  the  dead  must  be  obeyed. 
So  there  they  laid  her,  alone  in  the  starlight,  and  the  wild  winds 
and  storms  have  for  long  ages  raved  and  battled  around  that  lonely 
cairn. 

The  love  of  the  bleak  north  land  seems  ever  to  have  retained  its 
hold  on  the  hearts  of  such  of  its  sons  and  daughters  as  were  drawn 
southward.  The  north  of  Skye  has  its  tradition  of  how  an  invad- 
ing Norwegian  force  became  so  friendly  with  the  Skye  men,  that 


LEGEND  OF  A  NORWEGIAN  BRIDE.  417 

they  invited  the  island  chief  to  sail  back  to  Norway  with  them, 
which  he  did,  and  there  wooed  and  won  the  king's  daughter,  who 
returned  to  Skye  as  his  bride.  But  the  love  of  home  was  too 
strong,  and  in  her  ceaseless  yearning  for  the  land  she  had  forsaken, 
she  drooped  and  died.  But  with  her  latest  breath,  she  bade  her 
lord  promise  that  she  should  be  buried  at  the  northern  point  of 
Stronveualin  with  her  face  raised,  looking  towards  Norway. 

You  will  find  numerous  cairns  as  you  wander  over  these  steep 
hill-paths,  each  one  marking  where  some  funeral  procession  has 
halted;  for  many  a  long  and  weary  tramp  will  the  Highlanders 
take,  sooner  than  suffer  the  dead  to  be  laid  in  unloved  ground,  and 
all  alike  have  the  same  longing  to  be  buried  at  the  old  home,  and 
sleep  with  kindred  dust.  So  when  a  man  dies,  his  old  Bible  and 
dirk,  blue  bonnet  and  plaid,  are  laid  on  his  coffin,  and  his  friends 
gather  round,  while  a  few  last  words  of  reverent  prayer  are  uttered; 
then,  shouldering  their  heavy  burden,  they  start  for  the  far-away 
kirkyard,  while  the  wild  pibroch  echoes  through  the  misty  hills. 
(In  olden  days  it  would  have  been  the  wilder  coronach,  but  this  is 
now  a  memory  of  the  past,  and  I  grieve  to  say  that  even  the 
pibrochs  are  being  fast  silenced  by  modem  bigotry.)  At  every 
spot  where  the  coffin  has  rested,  a  cairn  of  loose  stones  is  heaped 
up,  and  each  future  passer-by  is  expected  to  add  a  stone  in  rever- 
ence for  the  dead. 

Strangely  enough,  such  cairns  also  mark  the  spot  where  male- 
factors have  perished,  or  have  been  buried,  and  each  passer-by 
flings  a  stone  in  token  of  abhorrence  of  their  crime,  or,  as  some 
folks  say,  to  appease  the  unquiet  spirit,  which  the  old  Celts 
believed  was  doomed  to  hover  near  the  unhallowed  spot.  Which- 
ever is  the  true  meaning,  the  custom  is  still  kept  up.  It  is  curious 
to  remember  that  in  Egypt,  Syria,  Ceylon,  and  some  other  lands, 
cairns  are  likewise  heaped,  with  strangely  diverse  meaning — either 
in  honourable  memory  of  the  dead,  or  in  abhorrence  of  some  evil 
action.  The  difference  seems  to  be,  that  in  the  former  case  the 
stone  is  laid  carefully,  in  the  latter  it  is  tj^rown  contemptuously. 

Such  a  funeral  procession  as  I  have  described,  you  may  chance 
to  see  winding  its  way  through  these  wild  glens  towards  Skeabost, 

R  B 


41 S  IN   THE  HEBRIDES. 

where  a  rocky  river  runs  between  low,  green  hills  into  a  bine  sea- 
loch,  both  bearing  the  same  name — Snizort.  On  an  island  in  the 
stream  stands  just  such  a  ruined  kirk  as  those  in  MuU  and 
Cantyre,  with  the  same  old  carved  stones  and  rank  grass — old 
knights  with  their  swords,  mossy  inscriptions,  some  stones  broken, 
others  upheaved.  The  place  was  known  in  olden  days  as  "  Sanct 
Colm's  kirk  in  Snesfurd,  in  Troutemess."  It  is  a  bonnie  resting- 
place;  but  the  frequent  influx  of  new  sleepers,  and  the  rushing 
and  babbling  of  the  divided  waters,  take  away  from  the  perfect 
peace  and  sUence — and  the  feeling  of  being  alone  with  generations 
long  since  forgotten,  which  lend  such  a  charm  to  those  quiet  tombs 
among  the  green  bent  hills. 

There  is  no  bridge  to  connect  the  island  with  the  banks  of  the 
river,  so  the  funeral  processions  from  either  side  of  the  country 
must  ford  the  stream,  and  sometimes  they  find  it  in  spate,  and 
have  to  wait  for  hours — it  may  be  days — before  they  can  lay  their 
clansman  beneath  the  sod.  Happily  they  are  rarely  in  any  hurry, 
and  as  they  find  no  lack  of  creature  comforts  in  the  tidy  village, 
the  usual  approved  method  of  keeping  up  their  spirits  is  rarely 
neglected  !  Nor  need  we  wonder  if,  returning  from  the  little  inn 
through  the  gloaming  or  in  the  moonlight,  strange  eerie  tales  gather 
round  the  Island  of  the  Dead — of  weird  phantoms  riding  on  dark 
storm-clouds,  or  bright  spirits  on  the  moonbeam,  connecting  it  with 
the  World  of  Shadow. 

Numerous  as  are  these  ancient  burial-grounds,  they  are  not  all 
held  in  equal  favour.  In  Easter  Eoss,  for  instance,  where  every 
green  bay  along  the  coast  has  its  quiet  kirkyard  beside  the  sea, 
though  the  old  church  itself  has  generally  mouldered  away,  you 
will  notice  a  strange  predominance  of  very  small  graves,  and  may 
naturally  suppose  that  child-life  in  Ross-shire  is  at  an  unusually 
low  ebb.  The  truth  of  the  matter  is,  that  some  peculiar  sanctity 
is  attached  by  the  people  to  the  kirkyard  of  Nigg,  to  which  they 
will  carry  their  dead  from  distances  of  forty  miles,  and  the  little 
graves  by  the  lone  sea-side  are  for  the  most  part  those  of  tinbap- 
tized  children,  who  are  Kot  deemed  worthy  to  be  carried  so  far,  or 
laid  beside  Chiistian  dust  in  the  much-esteemed  ground  of  Nigg. 


HIGHLAND  FUNERALS.  419 

This,  however,  implies  a  superstitioiis  reverence  for  baptism  which 
a  genuine  Highlander  will  indignantly  disclaim;  only  in  the 
strictest  confidence  would  such  a  confession  be  unwillingly  made. 

The  implied  disrespect  to  the  poor  babies  reminds  me  of  a  speech 
made  by  the  old  grave-digger  at  Nairn,  in  a  year  of  sad  mortality 
among  the  little  ones.  A  friend  seeing  him  at  work  asked,  '*  Weel, 
John,  hae  ye  had  a  gude  season ) "  **  Hoot  na ! "  was  the  answer ; 
''just  a  heap  of  sma'  trash ! "  You  perceive  that  being  paid  so 
much  per  foot  for  his  work,  his  profits  varied  with  the  stature  of 
all  comers. 

Happily  for  the  survivors,  the  old  customs  of  extravagant  funeral 
feasts  are  now  well-nigh  among  the  things  of  the  past.  Such 
feasting,  for  instance,  as  has  been  recorded  at  the  funeral  of  one  of 
the  Lords  of  the  Isles  in  lona,  when  nine  hundred  cows,  each  valued 
at  three  marks,  were  consumed  !  Or  that  of  Sir  William  Hamilton, 
which  cost  J&5000,  equal  to  two  years  of  his  salary  as  Lord  Justice 
Clerk.  Or,  again,  that  of  the  Mackintosh,  in  1704,  when  cooks 
and  confectioners  were  brought  from  Edinbuigh — no  easy  matter 
in  those  days — and  extravagant  feasting  was  continued  for  a  whole 
month,  waiting  the  arrival  of  the  chief  mourner,  who  had  to  be 
sought  and  found  in  the  south  of  England.  -Indeed  one  account 
says  that  the  body  lay  in  state  at  Dalcross  Castle  for  upwards  of 
two  months,  during  which  open  house,  in  the  widest  acceptation  of 
the  term,  was  kept,  claret  flowing  incessantly  1  When  at  length 
the  funeral  day  arrived,  the  procession  extended  for  four  miles,  the 
first  man  having  reached  the  churchyard  of  Petty  before  the  last 
had  left  the  castle  1 

Such  profusion  marks  the  same  strange  law  of  hospitality  which 
forbade  a  Highland  chief  to  question  his  unbidden  guest  as  to  his 
business  until  the  expiration  of  a  year,  should  he  choose  to  stop  so 
long.  Hence  the  GaeKc  sentence  which  describes  the  house  of  a 
chief  as  ^*  the  point  to  which  the  road  of  every  stranger  leads." 
Not  that  the  chief  had  any  monopoly  of  this  unbounded  liberality. 
The  poorest  of  these  islanders  were  so  ready  to  entertain  strangers 
and  load  them  with  the  best  they  had  to  give,  that  in  olden  days 
we  hear  of  unprincipled  persons  from  the  mainland  frequenting  the 

B  B  2 


420  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

Hebrides  for  no  other  purpose  than  that  of  sponging  on  their 
neighbours ;  and  when  the  iirst  householder  whom  they  honoured 
^nth  a  risit  had  been  eaten  out  of  house  and  home,  he  took  them 
on  to  his  next  neighbour,  where  they  remained  and  repeated  the 
process. 

Perhaps  the  quaintest  illustration  of  a  hospitable  board  literally 
groaning  under  the  weight  of  good  things  heaped  upon  it,  was  a 
great  dinner  given  to  Argyle  by  M'Eachin,  in  Cantyre,  whereat 
every  creature  he  could  possibly  lay  hands  on,  was  roasted  whole 
and  set  on  the  table  "  standing  on  its  stumps  ! "  There  was  an  ox; 
a  goat,  a  sheep,  a  stag,  a  roe,  hares,  rabbits,  and  all  manner  of 
poultry,  and  many  another  good  thing,  cooked  in  such  fashion  as 
might  well  have  given  Soyer  a  dream  of  Bedlam  ! 

At  length  the  sad  day  came,  when  we  were  compelled  to  bid 
adieu  to  beautiful  Skye — its  mountains,  and  its  kindly  people. 
We  took  the  coach  to  dreary  Broadford,  where  visitors  ar«  now 
landed  by  steamers  from  Strome  Ferry,  the  new  railway  terminus. 
Just  imagine  the  snorting  iron  horses  having  found  their  way  even 
to  these  wilds  (solitudes  no  longer),  and  making  those  grand  misty 
summits  echo  back  their  hideous  shriek  and  whistle.  The  poet's 
nightmare  of  seeing  a  railway  "  bridge  the  Hebrides  "  has  well-nigh 
been  rendered  a  vulgar  fact,  and  his  wail  over  the  great  Saxon 
invasion  keeps  ringing  in  our  ears — 

"  Land  of  Bens  and  Qlens  and  Conies, 

Headlong  rivers,  ocean  floods  ! 

Have  we  lived  to  see  this  outrage 

On  your  haughty  solitudes  ? 
■  ••••• 

Strange  to  them  the  train — bat  stranger 

The  mixed  throng  it  bubbles  forth, 
Strand  and  Piccadilly  emptied 

On  the  much -enduring  North  !" 

All  of  which  is  very  fine  theoretically ;  but  practically  it  most 
be  confessed  that  a  luxurious  railway  couj^  has  some  advantages 
over  a  crowded  coach ;  and  as  to  our  brethren  of  the  city,  I  only 
hope  they  may  all  carry  away  as  sunny  memories  of  Skye  as  have 


CANAL  AND  RAILWAY  FORETOLD  BY  SEERS.  421 

clang  to  me.  To  them  above  all  others,  the  four-and-twenty  hours 
ivhich  transport  them  from  the  heart  of  London  to  the  farthest 
limits  of  these  ivild  hills  should  be  a  concentrated  essence  of  delight 
— ^and  no  British  railway  could  possibly  lie  through  scenes  more 
beautiful  than  does  the  new  Skye  line. 

The  old  folk  will  tell  you  that  the  railway  is  no  new  idea  to 
them,  for,  just  as  the  making  of  the  Caledonian  Canal  had  long 
been  foretold  by  seers,  who  beheld  ships  with  great  white  sails 
passing  to  and  fro,  where  other  men  could  see  only  broom  and 
heather, — so,  more  than  two  hundred  years  ago,  Coignoch  Oig,  the 
prophet  of  Brahan  in  Eoss-shire  (many  of  whose  prophecies  have 
already  been  strangely  verified),  foretold  that  a  day  was  coming 
when  every  stream  in  this  wild  region  would  be  bridged,  when  a 
white  house  should  stand  on  every  hill,  and  balls  of  fire  would  pass 
rapidly  up  and  down  Strath peffer  ! 

More  especially,  for  the  last  thirty  years  have  they  expected  the 
railway,  for  it  was  about  that  time,  "  just  thirty  years  syne,"  that 
the  folk  travelling  by  the  coach,  between  Loch  Carron  and  Strome 
Ferry  (by  the  old  road,  which  ran  very  near  where  the  railway  now 
goes),  were  startled  one  dark  winter  night  by  seeing  a  great  light 
coming  towards  them,  and  as  it  drew  nearer  they  saw  that  it  was  a 
huge  dark  coach  with  fiery  lamps — they  could  see  no  horses  ;  only 
a  great  glare  of  flames  and  sparks,  and  it  rushed  past  them  at  a 
place  where  there  was  no  road,  and  vanished  among  the  mountains. 
After  this,  the  mysterious  coach  was  seen  at  frequent  intervals  for 
two  or  three  years — till  at  last  the  coachman  could  no  longer  stand 
the  constant  strain  on  his  nerves,  and  gave  up  running  at  night. 

This  is  the  story  that  you  may  hear  from  any  old  "  cailliach  "  as 
she  sits  in  the  gloaming,  crooning  her  old  songs  by  the  light  of  the 
red  peat  fire,  or  spiniiing  her  endless  yarns  to  the  group  of  bare- 
legged and  bare-armed  lassies,  whose  bright  eyes  glitter  in  the 
ruddy  light  as  they  press  around  her,  or  cling  closer  one  to  another, 
as  the  interest  of  the  story  becomes  more  thrilling.  Presently  the 
lads  will  join  them,  for  the  day's  work  is  done,  and  **  e'en  brings  a' 
hame  "  to  the  pleasant  fireside. 

And  already  we  look  back  to  **  the  old  coaching  days  "  as  to  a 


422  IN  THE  HEBRIDES, 

dream  of  the  past !  Yet  there  are  people  still  living  who  remember 
when  the  coaches  first  b^gan  to  run  regularly  north  of  Aberdeen, 
and  what  a  grand  thing  that  was  thought !  Nay,  more ;  there  are 
many  gentlemen  who  can  vividly  recollect  going  from  here  to 
London  in  a  sailing  smack,  as  the  simplest  and  least  troublesome 
route.  How  often  I  have  heard  my  father  describe  such  voyages, 
and  the  annoyance  of  being  becalmed  for  days  together !  Then 
came  the  coasting  steamers;  a  grand  improvement,  and  many  a 
merry  run  we  have  had  in  them  between  London  and  Moray. 
Now  all  these  are  things  of  the  past.  You  breakfast  one  morning 
in  sight  of  the  great  Skye  hills,  and  the  next  finds  you  at  Euston 
Square — ^a  process  so  simplo,  that  life  becomes  one  incessant  railway 
journey,  for  ever  whirling  to  and  fro  I 

On  the  present  occasion,  we  were  not  oppressed  by  the  encroach, 
ments  of  civilization.  Our  route  lay  by  Kyle  Akin,  or  Kyle  Hakin 
(the  Straits  of  Uaco),  where  we  had  to  cross  Loch  Alsh  by  ferry. 
Happily  the  weather  was  calm  and  dry,  else  the  crossing  in  a  small 
open  boat  might  have  been  unpleasant  The  scramble  of  young 
natives  to  secure  a  fair  share  of  our  luggage  and  our  coin  was  some- 
thing startling  to  behold,  in  Britain. 

Close  to  Kylo  Akin  are  the  ruins  of  Castle  Moil,  an  old  square 
keep,  whose  solid  and  substantial  walls  seem  to  form  part  of  the 
rock  on  which  they  stand,  overhanging  the  water.  It  was  built  by 
the  daughter  of  a  Norwegian  king  (or,  some  say,  by  a  Scottish 
dame,  known  as  Saucy  Mary),  who  exacted  a  toll  from  all  vessels 
passing  through  the  Kyles ;  and  kept  a  strong  chain  stretched  from 
shore  to  shore  as  a  toll-bar,  the  chain  being  fastened  with  iron  rings 
to  the  rocks  on  either  side. 

We  drove  on  vid  Balmacarra  and  Loch  Alsh  till  we  reached 
Domie  Ferry,  where,  with  one  honourable  exception  (and  he  was 
an  American),  we  found  every  man  connected  with  the  ferry  hope> 
lessly  drunk,  in  honour  of  a  cattle  show.  Some  were  surly ;  soma 
were  cheery ;  others  helplessly  imbecile,  having  attained  the  same 
pleasant  stage  as  that  worthy  Londoner,  who,  returning  home  at  an 
advanced  hour  of  the  morning  "shlightly  shober,"  plumed  himself 
on  being  particularly  early,  having  passed  the  great  tower  of  West- 


A.  STIUTAGEH.  423 

minster  junt  aa  Big  Ben  weis  striking  one,  and  what  was  more,  "  it 
hmi  ftntck  one  gheveral  timet "  ! 

Being  thus  forcittlj  detained,  we  consoied  ourselvea  by  sketching 
the  old  castte  of  Eitean  Donan,  which  stands  on  an  island  in  Loch 
Duich.  It  was  built  on  the  site  of  an  old  vitrified  fort,  by 
Alexander  II.,  to  overawe  the  Banes  and  Norwegians;  and  the 
first  constable  of  the  castle  was  one  Ki>nnpt.h  Mafhe«on,  whiisa 


descendant  were  known  as  MacKennich,  the  eons  of  Kennet)>. 
Hence  sprang  the  Ulackenziea  of  Seaforth.  Since  then  the  old 
ca^ile  haa  been  twice  consumed  and  twice  rebiidded.  In  the  last 
instance  it  wae  taken  for  Prince  Charlie  by  a  farmer  who  held  that 
all  stratagemij  are  fair  in  love  and  war.  So  he  {eigned  sore  distress 
at  the  prospect  of  stormy  weather,  and  induced  the  governor  to  lenrl 
him  some  hands    to  help  in  rapidly  gumering  the  harvest     ^'u 


424  IN  THE  HEBRIDES. 

cloud  on  the  political  sky  threatened  danger  in  that,  qnarter,  and 
the  unwary  governor  sent  a  detachment  of  his  men  to  turn  their 
swords  into  sickles.  In  their  absence,  a  strong  body  of  Rintail 
men  surprised  the  enfeebled  remnant,  and  captured  their  strong- 
hold. 

Then  the  last  Earl  of  Seaforth  rallied  all  the  men  of  Eintail  to 
fight  in  the  Stuart  cause,  and  as  the  pipes  struck  up  their  heart- 
stirring  notes,  the  enthusiasm  knew  no  bounds,  and  the  crags 
around  re-echoed  the  wild  shouts  that  rose,  as  one  and  all  started 
up  to  dance  on  the  old  leaden  roof,  ere  they  went  forth  to  join  the 
Prince.  That  deHant  war-dance  was  the  last  merry-making  of  these 
brave  lads.  A  few  days  later,  a  wail  of  grief  and  woe  resounded 
from  every  hill  and  valley,  for  news  of  battle  and  of  defeat  had 
been  brought  by  the  foe,  who  came  to  bum  the  castle  (a.d.  1719), 
and  to  tell  how  that  gallant  band  had  shed  their  hearts'  blood  for 
their  King  on  Sherritrmuir.  , 

When  we  had  waited  fully  a  couple  of  hours,  our  American 
friend  thought  some  of  his  men  might  be  made  to  work  ;  and 
though  they  presented  the  lively  appearance  of  inebriated  owls,  they 
made  a  start ;  and  under  pressure  of  startlingly  strong  language,  did 
succeed  in  getting  across.  It  was,  however,  10  p.m.  before  we 
reached  Shiel  House  Inn,  which  stands  at  the  head  of  Loch  Duicli 
— a  blue  sea  loch — fringed  with  golden  sea-weed.  The  house  is  a 
pleasant  one  to  halt  at.  Behind  it  rise  the  Seven  Sisters  of 
Kintail,  a  group  of  grassy,  cone-shaped  hills,  bearing  so  strong  a 
family  likeness  as  to  have  earned  this  name.  Next  day  we  had  a 
lovely  walk  up  Mam  Eataghan,  to  see  the  sun  set  once  more  behind 
the  far  distant  CuchuUins,  and  as  we  turned  to  descend,  a  wondrous 
effect  of  stonn  and  rainbow  swept  over  the  peaks  of  Kintail. 

About  a  mile  fram  Shiel  House  is  a  subterranean  cave,  close  to 
the  road,  into  which  (if  you  are  curious  to  see  what  was  probably 
the  dwelling  of  some  old  Pict)  you  may  crawl.  Once  inside,  you 
will  find  a  chamber  eight  feet  high,  paved  and  lined  with  large 
ilag-stones,  and  with  a  stone  roof  of  long  slabs,  resting  on  cross 
rafters,  also  of  stone. 

We  greatly  regretted  not  having  left  a  day  to  see  the  Falls  of 


KILL  CHUIHEIM.  425 

Glomalt,  by  far  the  highest  in  Scotland,  and  within  a  very  beautiful 
ride  of  Glen  Shiel.  However,  we  were  bound  to  push  onwards  to 
lovely  Glen  Quoich,  where  the  pleasant  weeks  stippied  by  all  too 
quickly.  Very  charming  were  the  long  glorious  days  on  dark  Loch 
Houm,  and  pleasant  too  the  social  evenings  in  the  sunniest  of 
Buhny  homes,  when  the  doer-stalkera  and  fishers  returned  in  the 
gloaming  to  tell  of  their  day's  sport,  and  to  dream  away  happy 
hours  in  a  paradise  of  roses  and  fair  women,  lulled  by  melodious 
voices,  which  seemed  to  glide  away  on  each  moonlight  ripple,  as 
the  tiny  wavelets  of  the  blue  loch  plashed  against  the  trim,  wcll- 
n)own  law  II. 


A  beautiful  drive  down  Glen  Garry  brought  us  to  old  Invergarry 
Castle,  and  so  to  Fort  Augustus,  still  called  by  the  Highlanders 
Kill  Chuimein,  in  memory  of  that  Cuming  the  Fair  who  twelve 
hundred  years  ago  held  the  bishopric  of  the  Isles  as  seventh  Bishop 
of  lona,  but  known  to  the  Sassenach  only  by  the  name  of  the 
grey  old  fort,  which  has  so  recently  been  demolished,  that  on  its 
site  might  be  erected  a  new  Roman  Catholic  college. 

Theuce  taking  passage  by  the  steamer,  we  sailed  up  beautiful 


426  IN  THE  HBBRIDES. 

Loch  Neas,  taking  a  farewell  look  at  Castle  XJrquhart,  once  an  old 
holding  of  the  Clan  Camming,  and  in  later  days  one  of  the  royal 
forts  of  Scotland,  besieged  by  Edward  I.  in  1303.  Many  a  hard 
tussle  with  the  English  did  it  witness,  but  for  the  last  three  hundred 
years  there  has  been  no  mention  of  it  in  any  chronicle  of  fight  or 
fray.  It  is  now, a  picturesque  ruin,  rising  from  the  loch  on  a  rocky 
promontory. 

The  Highlanders  call  these  grey  ruins  Strone  Castle,  and  believe 
that  two  mysterious  vaulted  cells  are  hollowed  in  the  rock  below. 
The  one  contains  a  countless  treasure  of  gold ;  but  in  the  other  a 
fearful  pestilence  is  sealed  up,  which,  if  once  released,  would  stalk 
forth  in  irresistible  might  and  depopulate  the  land,  having  first  slain 
the  rash  hand  that  opened  its  prison  door.  So  the  dread  of  liberat- 
ing so  dire  a  scourge  has  even  subdued  the  covetous  craving  for 
gold,  and  the  treasure-chamber  remains  inviolate. 

A  few  hours  later  found  us  once  more  in  the  capital  of  tVe 
Highlands,  and  the  thought  of  our  six  months  in  the  Hebrides  w;u 
even  as  the  memory  of  a  pleasant  dream. 


INDEX. 


Ailsa  Crag         ...  3,  32 

Antediluvian  days  .  .  .412 
Arran,  Isle  of    .  .2 

Bagpipes 353 

—  Associations  .  .  356 
Baptism,  Pagan  .  .  .  102 
Baptism  under  difficulties  .  .42 
Barnacle  .....  373 
Barra 303 

—  McNeills  of  .  .  306-6 
Barra  Isles  .  .  .  ,270 
Barvas,  Pottery  of     .  .  283 

Basaltic  Caves  ....  105 

—       Coast   .         .         .         .168 
Bay  of  the  Boat,  Can  tyre   .         .13 
—         —     lona'        .         .     98 
Beans,  Sea        ....  297 
Beavers  in  Scotland  .  .116 

Beltane  ....  215,  217 
Ben  Blabhien  .  .  .  .404 
Benbecula  ....  296 

Bermuda,  Wreck  of  the  .  .  307 
Bernera,  South  .         .         307-9 

Betrothal  ceremonies  .         .     24 

Big  Sheep  .         .         .         .277 

'  Birds  of  calm  •  .         .         .381 

Blended  faiths  .         .     238-241 

Boar,  Wild— legends  .  .  .  409 
Bonaveneta  Loch  .  .  .  274 
Boreray  Crags  (St  Eilda)  .  .  322 
Brigbity  Celtic  goddess  .  .  69 
her  fires        .         .         .60 

Oailean  Mor,  the  great  Colin  .  369 
Cailleach  Vera,  Legends  of      108-110 

Cairns 417 

Caledonian  Canal  foretold  .  421 


PA6K 

Camel,  sculptured  at  Canna  59,  112 
Campbelton  ....  7 
Canna,  Isle  of   .         .         .     111-113 

Cantyre 16 

Cappan  Cuildich  on  lona  .  .97 
Carnac  .....  196 
Caschrom,  wooden  plough  .  144 

Castle  Bay,  Barra  .  .  .  305 
Caatle  Urquhart  .         .         .  426 

Cattle  Market,  Loch  Maddy  .  284 
Charles  Edward  in  the  Isles        .  338 

—  —      on  the  Long 

—  —  Island  .  341 

—  —  on  Kriskay  .  305 
Charred  wood  preserved  225-6,  230-1 
Christmas,  its  date  .  .  223-4 
Churchyards      .         ^         .         .  8,  9 

—  Kil-Colm-Keil         .     14 

—  Kil-Couslan  .         .     22 

—  Kil-Kevan     .         .     25 

—  of  South  Uist  .  300 

—  of  Kilbar  on  Barra   306 

—  of  Eilmuir,  Skye       348 

—  of  Trurapan   .         .  362 

—  of   Portree,  most 

ancient       .         .  382 

—  of  Snizort      .         .  418 

—  of  Nigg  in  Easter 

Ross .         .         .  418 

Clavie 226 

Cock  buried  alive  .  .  .  252 
—  drowned  in  Algeria  .  .  253 
Coignoch  Gig,  the  Highland  seer  421 
Colonsay,  Isle  of  .  .  .40 
Combined  profession,  evil  of  .135 
Conan,  Valley  of  the  .         .151 

Cormorants       ....  364 

—  eaten       .        .        .369 


428 


INDEX. 


PAOI 

Cornish  blessings        .         .         .  299 

Coronation  stone,  its  wanderings  83 

—  —     reaches  lona  85 

—  —    Westminster 

Abbey  .  86 
Corrie  Vreckan — Legend  of  Whirl- 
pool ....  39 
Corruisk  ....  405-9 
Crofters'  evidence  .  .  .311 
Cuchullins         ....  404 

—  Legends  of  .  .413 
Culdee  Church  .         .      *  .        91, 93 

Dalriads 6 

Deer  forests       ....  278 

—  bad  neighbours  .  .312 
Deisul  ....  241-245 
Dhu  Lochan  ....  405 
Diabolic  fancy  dress  .  .  .  366 
Dornie  Ferry  ....  422 
Dragon  mounds  .  .  47-56 
Dress  in  the  Isles  .  .  .128 
Drinking  shells  ....  345 
Druid's  Isle,  lona  .  .  .58 
Duart  Castle — Legend  .  .  107 
Dunaverty  Fort          .         .         .19 

—  Legends  of        .        20,  22 

Dunolly 42 

Dunstaffuage  .  .  .43,  369 
Duntulm  Castle  .         .     149,  166 

Dunvegan  Castle        .         .351, 357 

—  fairy  flag  .  .  360 
Dunvegan  treachery  .  .  -.119 
Dyes 290 

Eagle 160 

East  and  West ....  246 
Ecclesiastical  Oddities  .  41,  126 
Eels,  abhorrence  of  .  .  .  366 
Eggs  ....  279,294 
Eigg,  Coniferous  forest,  fossil     ,  117 

—  Massacre  .  ,  .118 
Eilean  Donan  ....  423 
Eilean  Skianaoh  .  .  .120 
Elachnave,  Isle  of  .  .  .39 
Emigration  in  1851  and  1883  .  319 
Encroachment  of  ocean  .  .  134 
Epilepsy — Strange  cures  .  261-3 
Eriskay,  Isle  of  .         ,         ,  306 


Erratic  boulders 

VAOS 

.  411 

Evictions  . 

.     317-319 

Ey-Brides,  Isles  of  Brighit 

.     59 

Factories  in  Skye 

.  286 

Fairy  hillocks    . 

.  153 

Fairy  lore 

.  175 

Fever-cloud  on  Cantyre 

.     21 

Fincastle 

.  274 

Fire  ceremonies 

.  101 

Fire  circuit 

226,  227 

Fire  in  centre  of  house 

100.  306 

Fire,  objection  to  give  it    . 

228-30 

Fisher  folk 

.   198 

Fisheries,  Herring     . 

200,  305 

Fladda  of  the  Ocean  . 

.   106 

Flat  Fishes 

.  183 

Flodigarry 

.  236 

Flora  Maodonald 

.  342 

—          —         her  grave 

)         .  349 

Fly-disperser     . 

151  n. 

Folk-lore  of  many  lands 

.  177 

Font,  divided    . 

.     41 

Fords        .         .         .         . 

295-7 

Forres  witches  .         .         : 

• 

260,  263  «. 

Gaelic       .         .        .        . 

.  141 

—    Colonies . 

.  143 

Grange,  Lady    . 

.  361 

Gordon  Cathcart,  Lady 

.    304,  319 

(Jigab,  Isle  of    . 

•     06 

Glen  Qnoich 

.  425 

Goose-bearing  trees    . 

.    373,374 

Gruagach  stones 

.     71 

Gulf  Stream,  influence  on  < 

3li. 

mate 

.  146 

—         its  contributioi] 

8  280,  297 

Haavelinga 

.  400 

Uaoo*8  (King)  galley 

.     77 

—          his  funeral  . 

.  199 

Halibut,  gigantic 

368  «. 

Hallowe'en 

.  220 

Hand-mill 

.  272 

Hand-mirror,  xised  in  divination   220 
Hard  times        ....  1.17 

Harris 270 

Harris  tweed     ....  273 


INDEX. 


429 


VASS 

Hefttfaer,  cutting  for  thatch  pro- 

Lews, the . 

YAOB 

.  268 

hibited 

.  813 

Lighthouse,  South  Bemera 

.  307 

Hebrides,  number  of . 

.  158 

'  Lioom  *  (Shetland)  . 

.  384 

—        patron  goddess  of 

.     59 

Lobsters    .... 

.  294 

Hecia,  mountain 

.  302 

Lochaber,  men  of 

.  383 

Highland  character   . 

.  139 

Loch  Alsh 

.  422 

—        funerals 

.  419 

Loch  Awe,  legend  of 

109,  359 

—        homes  ! !    . 

302,  313 

Loch  Columbkille 

.  382 

—       hospitality 

.  419 

Lochdar    .... 

.  302 

—        pride 

.  118 

Loch  Duich 

.  405 

Highlander's,  a,  revenge 

107,  118 

Loch  Eport 

.  310 

Hirt,  ancient  name  of  St  Kilda    321 

Loch  Maddy 

283-289 

Holbom,  Old  Bourne,  Tyburn, 

Lochs  in  North  Uist  . 

.  290 

South-borne,  Mary-le-bone     403 

—      in  South  Uist . 

.  301 

Holy  Isles 

.     56 

—      on  Barra 

.  306 

Horse-races,  St  Barr's  Day 

.  110 

Long  Isle  .... 

.  268 

—         St.  MichaePs  Day  61,  109  | 

Luck,  of  an  unswept  house 

.  268 

Horses  forbidden 

144  n. 

—     ill,  of  succeeding  ejected 

House,  interior. 

.  130 

tenant 

.  268 

Hugh's  Castle    . 

.  147 

Machars   .... 

.  291 

Iodine       .... 

.     81 

Mackenzie  of  Seaforth 

.  423 

lona          .... 

.     57 

Macnahanish  Bay 

.     27 

—    tombs  of  kings  . 

87-89 

Maddy,  Loch    . 

.  287 

—   women  excluded 

.     90 

Maelrubha,  or  Mourie 

.     189-193 

—  ravaged  by  Norsemen 

.     92 

Marskow  .... 

.  406 

—  jackdaws  of  lona 

.     95 

May  morning    .         .     209,  215,  231 

Islay,  Inle  of      .         .         . 

.     36 

Maypoles  in  London  . 

.  233 

Isle  of  Big  Men 

.  253 

McCrimmon's  Lament 

.  171 

Medical  evidence 

.  314 

Jacobite  history 

.  838 

Medusm,  transformations   . 

.  372 

Johnson's,  Dr.,  visit  . 

.  147 

Mermen  and  mermaids 

.  376 

—        —   mud  floor  . 

.  160 

Midges,  'small  flies'  . 

.  150 

Midsummer  Eve 

218,  231-2 

Kelp-burning    . 

.      31.  287 

Milk-bewitched  cows 

.     256-262 

Kelpies,  water-goblins 

.  172 

—   deficient  supply 

.  275 

Kil.     Ancient  chapels 

7-10 

—    offerings    . 

.      70,  192 

Kill  Chuimein  (Fort  Auguf 

itus)  .  425 

Miogalay,  Isle  of 

.  309 

Kil-Colm-Keil  . 

14, 15   Monkstadt 

.   149,343 

Kilt  Rock 

.  179   Muck.     Isle  of  Mouach  or 

Swine  113 

King's  Evil 

.     248-251 

Mull,  Ross  of    . 

.     96 

Kingsburgh 

.  348 

—     Legends  of 

.  107 

Kisimul  Castle  . 

.  304 

Music-hall 

.  166 

Kyle  Akin 

.  119 

Kyle  Rhea 

.  422 

Need-fire  . 

.  194 

Nuts,  burning,  in  divination       .     48 

Lake  dwellings . 

.     46 

T<askantyra 

.  274 

Oban 

.     42 

Lewis  Land  League   . 

283  /». 

1   —    veriui  Holbom 

.  402 

430 


INDEX. 


PA.OB 

Oblation  of  milk  .      70,  192 

Odd  fishes  .  .  .  371-2 
Oil  on  broken  water,  its  use  general 

and  ancient        .         .         .  386 
—  applied  to  harbour  at  Peter- 
head   895 

Oronsay,  Isle  and  Monastery  .  40 
Owl's  question  ....  235 
Oyster-dredger's  song         .        .      3 

Pabba,  or  Pappadil  .  .  .238 
Pastoral  ballads  .  .  .276 
Pigs^  domestic  versus  wild  .  369 

—  few  in  number  .  .  .129 
Pipers'  College  ....  353 
"  Portuguese  men-of-war  "  on 

Barra         .         .  .298 

Potatoes  introduced  from  Ireland  303 
Poultry,  Celtic  prejudice  against 

129,  369 

—      in  St  Kilda .         .         .826 

Poverty     .        .        .        130  n.,  136 


Quern 
Quiraing   . 


.  272 
150,  155,  iOl 


Bainfall  in  Skye 
Bazor  Fish 
Red  Hills,  the 

legends  of 
Reilig  Orain 
Reindeer  in  Scotland 
Rod  el,  Monastery  of  . 
Roden  Fluke     . 
Rowan  tree  and  red  thread 


.  121 
.  296 
.  405 
.  416 
87-89 
.  254 
.  270 
.  368 
.  197 


Rude  Stone  Monuments,  Isle  of 

Lewis        .         .         .         .62 
—  —   Isle  of  lona  63-68 

Sabbatarian  warfare          ,  .  201 

Sacramental  gathering       .  160-163 
Sacred  Stones,  sites  for  Christian 

churches    •         .         ,  .  240 

Sacred  Stones  .        .        .  167-8 

—  White  .        .  45,  75 

—  Black,  Mecca  ,     69 

—  Japan        .     71 

—  lona         70, 74 


rAOB 


71 
73 
72 


Sacred  Stones,  Crystal  Globes 

—  Japan 

—  Babylon    . 

—  lona 

—  360  Monoliths 

—  Meoca 

—  360  Crosses 

—  lona  63,  76,  89 
Sacrifice  of  bulls  .  .  192-196 
Saddell  Castle  ...  17,  19 
Saint  Columba,  banished  .        .11 

—  —         in  Cantyre        .     13 

—  —         sacrifioes  St. 

Ovan   .        .     68 

—  —         magic  cures      .     76 

—  —         builds  his  ohapel 

on  lona  76 

—  —         thirty  abbeys  in 

Ireland  78 

—  —         his  life     .         .     78 

—  —         his  death  .     80 

—  —         his   *  Book    of 

Battles '        .     69 

—  —         his  pillow         .     83 

—  —         his  bones  83 

—  Moluoc    ....  169 

—  Malruba  or  Mourie  .     189-193 

—  Michael  ....  196 

—  Carnely    ....  196 

—  Cuthbert's  bull         .         .  193 

—  John's  Eve       .        .        .218 

—  Turos       .         .         .         .237 

—  Ronan     .        .         .    207,233 

—  Waurna  .        .        .       300  it. 

—  Kilda  .  .  .  .321 
Saints:  Kieran         ,        .         6,11 

—  Kinian         .        .        .19 

—  Palladiufl     ...     12 

—  Eentigem    .  .13 

—  Couslan  (strange  weddings)  93 
' —        Coiyin  (divorce  customs)  96 

—  Oran  .  .  .38.61 
Scaleless  fish,  prejudice  against  867-S 
Scandinavian  names  .  .  ,  406 
Scaraig,  Loch    ....  406 

—      Legend  of    .  .  409 

Scrofula,  healed  by  seventh  son    248 
—  —     by  the  king's 

touch      249,  251 


INDEX. 


431 


FAOB 

Sculptured  stones  of  Britain  and 

Ceylon       •        ,  .69 

Sea-birds.  .  .  310,322.326 
Sea-gull  .  .  .  .  277f». 
Sea-gull,  with  honey  .        .  365 

Sea-gull  fat  for  calming  rough 

seas,  St  Kilda    .        .        .383 
Sealing  fleet      .        .  .364 

Seals  ...  43, 288,  363 
Seals  and  swans,  in  folk-lore  .  376 
Sea-ware ....        272  n. 

Sea-weed 33 

^      its  uses  .        .  144 

—      food  for  cattle      .       188  a. 
Serpent  mounds  .       47-65 

Sheep,  southern         .  .  276 

Shiant  Isles  .  .  .  .236 
Shiel  House  .         .424 

Shielings  (summer  homes)  .  275 

Sligachan  glen  ....  402 
Smoke,  divination  by  .  .  24T 
Snake,  white  .54 

Snake,  in  medicine    .  .54 

Soa,  Isle  of  .  .  .  .  314 
Somerled .         .         .         .18. 358 

Staffa 103 

Standing  during  prayer,  ancient  125 
Storr,  The  .         .         .    184,  186 

Stonehenge  ....  219 
Stomoway  .         .  .281 

Stack-in-Armin,  Stack-Birael     .  321 

Star-fish 364 

Suderey  and  Norderey,  meaning 

of 113 

Suicides,  burial  of  .  .  .185 
Sunday  war  .  .  .  201-204 
Sunwise  turns  .  .  .  24U245 
Swine  possibly  held  in  reverence  114 
—    not  eaten  by  the  Celts      ,  129 

Tarbert  in  Cantyre,  meaning  of      37 

—      in  Harris       .         .         .271 

Tea,  extravagance  of .         .         .  279 

The  Thamis  (set  Thames  on  fire)  272 


Thumb-licking  .         .         .         .25 
Timber,  lack  of.         .        .        .133 

—  ancient  .         .         .117 

—  mediaeval  .  .  .133 
Tor  Ab,  St.  Columba*s  hillock  .  98 
Transformation  by  witchcraft  255, 375 


Transmigration,  belief  in   . 

.  267 

Trodhu      .... 

405-6 

Trout        .... 

.  301 

Turbot,  prejudice  against    . 

t 

.  367 

Uigg,  great  flood 

.  128 

—     Granary  of  Skye 

.  135 

Uist,  North 

285,  291 

Uist,  South 

297,  301 

Value  of  land    . 

.  280 

Vaternish  .... 

.  350 

Vatersay,  Isle    . 

303-4 

Viking^s  daughter,  burial  of 

.  416 

Vitrified  forts    . 

.       3 

Water-lilies 

.  290 

Waul  king  cloth 

.  273 

Wax  images  in  witchcraft  . 

263-5 

Well  of  Keith     . 

.  205 

Well,  St  Ronan*s 

.  207 

Well  wornhip  prohibited      206-7,  212 
Wells  for  deafness      .         .         .208 
Wells,  sacred,  for  favourable  wind  36 
—      for  madness  190,  207,  213 

Whiriing  well,  Loch  Torridon        208 


Whiskey  duty  in  Cantyre 

—      in  Skye 
Whistling  for  a  breeze 
Witchcraft 
Witches  tortured 
Wolves  in  Britain 
Wrecks  valued  I 
—      Calendar  for  1882 


•.      4 

.  286 

.  382 

256,  258 

259.  261 

115,116 

.  299 

.  398 


Yachtsmen,  Celtic  and  Saxon     .  401 
Yule,  feast  of    .        .         .        .221 


Chatto  <s- 
List  of 


WiNDUS'S 

Books. 


About The  Fellah  :  An  Egyp- 

lun    Novel.      By    Edbo-d    Abo— 
TnDdated  b;  Sir  IUvdal  Bo>ei 

Post  Svo,  illDiirued  bwuda,  ti. :  cl 
limp,  H.M.  

Adama  {W.  Davenport),  Worka 

A  Dictionary  of  tha  Drama.    B«ing 


le  Pkr 


>f  Ihs  Uail 


boudi.  tt.  ;  cr.  gro.  clMh  Sltn,  ll.  U. 

Mian  (Qrant),  Works  by: 

Colin  Ctout'aCalandar.    Ciawa  Sro^ 

clotb  eiln.  Si. 
Tha  Evolutlonlat  at  Larfa.    Crown 


limp,  li.  U. 
Quipa  and  ftulddltlaL    ScIbcik   .. 
WTOiviMi-oiiT   Adaui.     Poll  B»o. 


Adveptlslng,  A  History  of.from 


Ihe   E 


■.  Curio 


o.  by  A: 

p,ii.«a. 


Art  {The)  of  Amusing  :   A  Col- 

lecIiDQ  of  GKCsfa]  Aiti.  Gunn,  Tricki, 
Puulu.  and  Ctundu.     B)r  Funk 


H  of'Succcuful  AdvertiHr^ 

CdIoucwI   Pronliipiecs  ud    lu'u&l 
tions.  clotb  ^\f.1%.  Bd. 

Agony  Column  (The)  of  "The 

Tlmaa,"  from  iteo  in  1S70-    T"-' 


\A  boardi,  tl. 
Connclanoa*.     P«l 
boiudt,ll. 


ir«  of  Anemni  Ward.  By 
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"  My  Love ! " 


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CHATTO  6.    W INDUS,  PICCADILLY. 


27 


NOVELS. 


NEW  NOVELS  at  every  Library 

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Three  Vols.  [Shortly. 

Heart  and  Science:  A  Story  of  the 
Present  Day.  By  Wilkib  Collins. 
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Port  Salvatloip:  or.  The  Evangelist. 
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by  C.  Harry  Mbltzbr.  Two  Vols., 
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Author  of  *' Robin  Gray,"  "The 
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Three  Vols. 

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The  Hands  of  Justice.  By  F.  W. 
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Women  are  Strange,  Ac.    By  F.  W. 

KoBiNSON.    Three  Vols. 

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Winter.    Three  Vols. 


THE  PICCADILLY  NOVELS: 
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BY  MRS.  ALEXANDER, 
Maid,  Wife,  or  Widow  P 

BY  W.  BESANT  &  JAMES  RICE, 
Ready-Money  Mortlboy. 
My  Little  Girl. 
The  Case  of  Mr.  Lucraft. 
This  Son  of  Vulcan. 
With  Harp  and  Crown. 
The  Golden  Butterfly. 
By  Cella's  Arbour. 
The  Monks  of  Thelema. 
Twas  In  Trafalgar's  Bay. 
The  Seamy  Side. 
The  Ten  Years'  Tenant. 
The  Chaplain  of  the  Fleet. 

BY   WALTER  BESANT. 
All  Sorts  and  Conditions  of  Men. 

BY  ROBERT  BUCHANAN. 
A  Child   of  Nature. 
God  and  the  Man. 
The  Shadow  of  the  Swore*. 
The  jiyiartyrdom  of  Madel.nt. 
Love  Me  for  Ever. 

BY  MRS.  H,  LOVETT  CAMERON. 
Deceivers  Ever.  |  Juliet's  Guardian. 

BY  MORTIMER  COLLINS, 
Sweet  Anne  Page^ 
Transmigration. 
From  Midnight  to  Midnight. 

MORTIMER  &  FRANCES  COLLINS. 
Blacksmith  and  Scholar. 
The  Village  Comedy. 
You  Play  me  False. 

BY  WILKIE  COLLINS. 


Anton  I  na. 
Basil. 

Hide  and  Seek. 
The  Dead  Secret. 
Queen  of  Hearts. 
My  Miscellanies. 
Woman  In  White. 
The  Moonstone. 
Man  and  Wife. 
Poor  Miss  Finch. 


Miss  or  Mrs  ? 

New  Magdalen. 

The  Frozen  Deep. 

The  Law  and  the 
Lady. 

TheTwo  Destinies 
Haunted  Hotel. 
The  Fallen  Leaves 
Jezebel'sDaughter 
The  Black  Robe. 


23 


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Piccadilly  Novels,  cotUinuid — 
BY  BUTTON  COOK. 
Paul  Fo^toP**  Daughter. 

BY  WILLIAM  CYPLBS. 
Heart*  of  Gold. 

BY  J,  LEITH  DERWENT. 
Oup  Lady  of  Teare. 

BY  AT.  BBTHAM-EBWARDS. 
Felicia. 

BY  MRS.  ANNIE  EDWARDES. 
Archie  Lovell. 

BY  R.  E.  FRANCILLON. 
Olympla. 
Queen  Cophetua. 
One  by  One. 

BY  EDWARD  GARRETT. 
The  Capel  Qlrle. 

BY  CHARLES  GIBBON. 
Robin  Qray. 
For  Lack  of  Qold. 
In  Love  and  War. 
What  will  the  World  Say  P 
For  the  King. 
In  Honour  Bound. 
Queen  of  the  Meadow. 
In  Paature*  Green. 
The  Flower  of  the  Forest. 
A  Heart's  Problem. 
The  Braes  of  Yarrow. 

BY  THOMAS  HARDY. 
Under  the  Greenwood  Tree. 

BY  JULIAN  HAWTHORNE. 
Garth. 

El  I  Ice  Quenttn. 
Sebastian  Stroma. 
Prince  Saronl's  Wife. 

BY  SIR  A.  HELPS. 
Ivan  de  BIron. 

BY  MRS.  ALFRED  HUNT. 
Thornlcroft'e  Model. 
The  Leaden  Casket. 

BY  JEAN  INGELOW. 
Fated  to  be  Free. 

BY  HENRY  JAMES,  Jun. 
Confldence. 

BY  HARRIETT  JAY. 
The  Queen  of  Connaught. 
The  Dark  Colleen. 


Piccadilly  Novels,  continued — 

BY  HENRY  KINGSLEY, 
Number  Seventeen. 
Oakshott  Castle. 

BY  E.  LYNN  LINTON. 
Patricia  Kemball. 
Atonement  of  Learn  Dundaa. 
The  World  Well  Loet. 
Under  which  LordP 
With  a  Silken  Thi«ad. 
The  Rebel  of  the  Family. 
"My  Love!" 

BY  JUSTIN  McCarthy,  m.p. 

The  Waterdale  Neighbours. 
My  Enemy's  Daughter. 
Lin  ley  Rochford. 
A  Fair  Saxon. 
Dear  Lady  DIedaln. 
Miss  Misanthrope. 
Donna  Quixote. 
The  Comet  of  a  Season. 

BY  GEORGE  MACDONALD,  LLJ). 
Paul  Faber,  Surgeon. 
Thomas  WIngfold,  Curate. 

BY  KATHARINE  S.  MACQUOID, 
Lost  Rose 
The  Evil  Eye. 

BY  FLORENCE  MARRY  AT. 
Ot>en !  Sesame ! 
Written  in  Fire. 

BY  JEAN  MIDDLEMASS. 
Touch  and  Go. 

BY  D.  CHRISTIE  MURRAY. 
A  Life's  Atonement. 
Joeeph's  Coat. 
Coals  of  Firs. 
A  Model  Father. 

BY  MRS,  OLIPHANT. 
Whiteladlee. 

BY  JAMES  PAYN. 


Lost  Sir  Masslng- 
berd. 

Beet  of  Husbands 
Fallen  Fortunes. 
Halves. 

Walter'e  Word. 
WhatHeCoetHer 
Less   Black  than 

We're  Painted. 
By  Proxy. 


High  Spirits. 

Under  One  Roof. 

Carlyon's  Year. 

A    Confidential 
Agent. 

From  Exile. 

A   Grape  ftH>m  s 
Thorn. 

For  Cash  Only. 


CHATTd  6.    WIN  BUS,  PICCADILLY. 


29 


Piccadilly  Novels,  ccnOnrntd-^ 
BY  B,  C.  PRICE, 
Val«ntlna. 

BY  CHARLES  READE,  D.C.L, 

It  Is  Nevep  Too  Lato  to  Mend. 

Hard  Cash. 

Peg  WofTlngton. 

Christie  Johnstone. 

Qrltnth  Qaunt. 

The  Double  Marriage. 

Love  Me  Little,  Love  Me  Long. 

Foul  Play. 

A  Simpleton. 

The  Cloister  and  the  Hearth. 

The  Course  of  True  Love. 

The  Autobiography  of  a  Thief. 

Put  Yourself  In  His  Place. 

A  Terrible  Temptation. 

The  Wandering  Heir. 

A  Woman-Hater. 

Readlana. 

BY  MRS.  y,  H.  RIDDELL. 
Her  Mother's  Darling. 
Prince  of  Wales's  Garden-Party. 

BY  JOHN  SA  UNDERS. 
Bound  to  the  Wheel. 
Guy  Waterman. 
One  Against  the  World. 
The  Lion  In  the  Path. 
The  Two  Dreamers. 

BY  T.   W.  SPEIGHT. 
The  Mysterlee  of  Heron  Dyke. 

BY  R.  A.  STERNDALE, 
The  Afghan  Knife. 

BY  BERTHA  THOMAS. 
Proud  Malsle.     |     Cressida. 
The  Violin-Player. 

By  ANTHONY  TROLLOPE, 

The  Way  we  Live  Now. 
The  Amerloan  Senator. 
Frau  Frohmann. 
Marlon  Fay. 

BY  T.  A.  TROLLOPE, 
Diamond  Cut  Diamond. 

BY  SARAH  TYTLER. 
What  She  Came  Through. 
The  Bride's  Pass. 

BY  J.  S.  WINTER. 
Cavalry  Lll^. 


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The  Fellah. 

BY  HAMILTON  AWE. 
Carr  of  Carrlyon. 
Confidences. 

BY  MRS.  ALEXANDER. 
Maid,  Wife,  or  Widow  9 

BY  SHELSLEY  BEAUCHAMP. 
Grantley  Grange. 

BY  W.  BESANT  &  JAMES  RICE. 

Ready-Money  Mortiboy. 
With  Harp  and  Crown. 
This  Son  of  Vulcan. 
My  Little  Girl. 
The  Case  of  Mr.  Lueraft. 
The  Golden  Butterfly, 
dy  Cella's  ArbOur. 
The  Monks  of  i'heiema. 
Twas  In  Trafii%ar's  Bay.- 
The  Seamy  Side. 
The  Ten  Year^*  Tenant. 
The  Chaplain  of  the  Fleet. 

BY  FREDERICK  BOYLE. 
Camp  Notes. 
Savage  LIfls. 

BY  BRET  HARTE, 
An  Heiress  of  Red  Dog.- 
Gabriel  Conroy. 
The  Luck  of  Roaring  ($amp. 
Flip. 

BY  ROBERT  BUCHANAN. 
The  Shadow  of  the  Sword. 
A  Child  of  Nature. 

BY  MRS.  BURNETT. 
Surly  Tim. 

BY  MRS.  LOVETT  CAMERON. 
Deoelvers  Ever. 
Juliet's  Guardian. 

BY  MACLAREN  COBBAN. 
The  Cure  of  Souls. 

BY  C.  ALLSTON  COLLINS, 
The  Bar  Sinister. 


30 


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OPULAR  N0VKL».  COnttHUtd-^ 

BY  WILKIE  COLLINS. 

Antonlna* 

Basil. 

Hide  and  Seek. 

The  Dead  Secret. 

Queen  of  Hearts. 

My  MIeoellanles. 

The  Woman  In  White. 

The  Moonstone. 

Man  and  Vyife. 

Poor  Miss  Finch. 

Miss  or  Mrs.  P 

The  New  Magdalen. 

The  Frozen  Deep. 

The  Law  and  the  Lady, 

The  Two  Destinies. 

The  Haunted  Hotel. 

The  Fallen  Leaves. 

Jezebel's  Daughter. 

The  Black    .o.ic. 

BY  MORTIMER   COLLINS, 

Sweet  Anne  Page. 

Transmigration. 

From  Midnight  to  Midnight. 

A  Fight  with  Fortune. 

BY  MORTIMER  AND  FRANCES 
COLLINS. 

Sweet  and  Twenty. 

Frances. 

Blacksmith  and  Scholar. 

The  Village  Comedy. 

You  Play  me  False. 

By  BUTTON  COOK. 

Leo. 

Paul  Foster's  Daughter. 

BY  J.  LEITH  DERWENT, 
Our  Lady  of  Tears. 

BY  CHARLES  DICKENS. 

Sketches  by  Boz. 
The  Pickwick  Papers. 
Oliver  Twist. 
Nicholas  NIokleby. 

BY  MRS.  ANNIE  EDWARDES, 

A  Point  of  Honour. 
Archie  Lovell. 

BY  M.  BETHAM-BDWARDS. 
Felicia. 


Popular  Novsls,  amtinued — 

BY  EDWARD  EGGLESTON. 
Roxy. 

BY  PERCY  FITZGERALD. 

Bella  Donna. 

Never  Forgotten. 

The  Second  Mrs.  Tllloteon. 

Polly. 

Seventy-five  Brooke  Street. 

BY  ALBANY  DE  FONBLANQVE. 
Filthy  Lucrfk 

BY  R.  E.  FRANCILLON, 
Olympia. 
Queen  Cophetua. 
One  by  One. 

BY  EDWARD  GARRETT. 
The  Capei  G\r\|^. 

BY  CHARLES  GIBBON. 
Robin  Gray. 
For  Lack  of  Qold. 
What  will  the  World  Say  P 
In  Honour  Bound, 
The  Dead  Heart. 
In  Love  and  War. 
For  the  King. 
Queen  of  the  Meadow. 
'   In  Pastures  Qreen. 

BY  WILLIAM  GILBERT. 
Dr.  Austin's  Guests. 
The  Wizard  of  the  Mountain. 
James  Duke. 

BY  yAMES  GREENWOOD. 
pick  Temple. 

BY  ANDREW  HALLIDAY. 
Every-Day  Papers. 

BY  LADY  DUFFUS  HARDY. 
Paul  Wynter's  Saorlfloe. 

BY  THOMAS  HARDY. 
Under  the  Greenwood  Tree. 

BY  JULIAN  HAWTHORNE. 
Garth. 

El  I  ice  Quentln. 
Sebastian  Stroma. 

BY  SIR  ARTHUR  HELPS. 
Ivan  de  BIron. 

By  TOM  HOOD. 
A  Golden  Heart. 


CHATTO  &-    WINDUS,  PICCADILLY. 


31 


Popular  Novels,  continued— 
BY  VICTOR  HUGO. 
The  Hunchback  of  Notre  Dame. 

BY  MRS,  ALFRED  HUNT. 
Thornlcpoft'e  Model. 
The  Leaden  Caeket. 

BY  JEAN  INGELOW. 
Fated  to  be   Free. 

BY  HENRY  yAUES,  Jun. 
Confidence. 

BY  HARRIETT  JAY. 
The  Dark  Colleen. 
The  Queen  of  Connaught. 

By  HENRY  KINGSLEY. 
Oakshott  Castle. 
Number  Seventeen. 

BY  E,  LYNN  LINTON. 
Patricia  Kemball. 
The  Atonement  of  Leam  Dundee. 
The  World  Well  Lost. 
Under  which  Lord  ? 
With  a  Silken  Thread. 
The  Rebel  of  the  Family. 

Love!" 

BY  JUSTIN  McCarthy,  m.p. 

Dear  Lady  Disdain. 

The  Waterdale  Neighbours. 

My  Enemy's  Daughter. 

A  Fair  Saxon. 

Linley  Rochford. 

Mleor  Misanthrope. 

Donna  Quixote. 

BY  GEORGE  MACDONALD. 
Paul  Faber,  Surgeon. 
Thomas  WIngfold,  Curate. 

BY  MRS.  MACDONELL. 
Quaker  Cousins. 

BY  KATHARINE  S.  MACQUOID. 
The  £vll  Eye: 
Loet  Rose. 

BY  W.  H.  M ALLOC K. 
The  New  Republic. 

BY  FLORENCE  MARRY  AT, 
Open !  Seeame ! 
A  Harvest  of  Wild  Oats. 
A  Little  Stepeon. 
Fighting  the  Air. 
Written  in  Fire. 


Popular  Novels,  continued-^ 

BY  JEAN  MIDDLEMASS. 
Touch  and  Qo. 
Mr.  Doriillon. 

BY  D.  CHRISTIE  MURRAY. 

A  Life's  Atonement. 
A  Model  Father. 

BY  MRS.  OLIPHANT. 
Whiteiadles. 

BY  MRS.  ROBERT  0*RBILLY. 
Phoebe's  Fortunee. 

BY  OUIDA. 


Library  Editions 
may  be  had  in  crown 
6a.  each. 

Held  In  Bondage. 

Strathmore. 

Chandos. 

Under  Two  Flags. 

idalla. 

Cecil    Castie- 
malne. 

Tricotrln. 

Puck. 

Folie  Farine. 

A  Dog  of  Flandere.  1 


of  Ouida's  Novels 
8vo,  cloth  extra,  at 

Pascarel. 

TwoLlttieWooden 
Shoes. 

Signs. 

in  a  Winter  City. 

Ariadne. 

Friendship. 

Moths. 

Pipistrello. 

A   Village  C6m- 
mune. 


BY  JAMES  PAYN. 

Lost  Sir  Massing- 
berd. 

A  Perfect  Trea- 
sure. 

Bentinck's  Tutor. 

Murphy's  Master. 

A  County  Family. 

At  Her  Mercy. 

A  Woman's  Ven- 
geance. 

Cecil's  Tryst. 

CiyfTkrds  of  CiyfTe 

The  Family  Scape- 
grace. 

Foster  Brothers. 

Found  Dead.- 

Bast  of  Husbands  !  "'<^  Spirits. 

Walter's  Word.         Cariyon  s  Year. 

"•'^••-  A^^"     *"*''^' 

Fallen  Fortunes,  c™-     d.i     *. 

lAjw  *.  •_•    ^     *.  u  Some     Private 
What  He  Coet  Her       views. 

Humorous  Stories  1  From  Exile. 
BY  EDGAR  A.  POE. 
The  Mystery  of  Marie  Roget. 


Qwendol  I  ne'e  Har- 
vest. 

Like  Father,  Like 
S^on. 

A   Marine  Reel- 
den  ce. 

Marrfed'  BenesCCh 
HIrti. 

Mirk  Abbey. 

Not    Wooed,    but 
Wort. 

£2lDa  Rcrward. 
Les«   Blabk   than 

We're  Painted. 
By  Proxy. 
Under  One  Roof. 


32 


BOOKS  PUBLISHED  BY  CHATTO  6*   W INDUS, 


Popular  Novels,  continued — 

BY  E,C,  PRICE. 
Valentin*. 

BY  CHARLES  READE. 
It  fs  Never  Too  Late  to  Mend. 
Hai*d  Cash. 
Peg  Wofllngton. 
Christie  Johnstone. 
Grifnth  Qaunt. 
Put  Yourself  In  His  Place. 
The  Double  Marriage. 
Love  Me  Little,  Love  Me  Long. 
Foul  Play. 

The  Cloister  and  the  Hearth 
The  Course  of  True  Love. 
Autobiography  of  a  Thief. 
A  Terrible  Temptation. 
The  Wandering  Heir. 
A  Simpleton. 
A  Woman -Hater. 
Readlana. 

BY  MRS.  RIDDELL, 
Her  Mother's  Darling. 

BY  BAYLE  ST.  JOHN. 
A  Levantine  Family. 

BY  GEORGE  AUGUSTUS  SAL  A, 
Qasllght  and  Daylight. 

BY  JOHN  SA  UNDERS. 
Bound  to  the  Wheel. 
One  Against  the  World. 
Guy  Waterman. 
The  Lion  In  the  Path. 
The  Two  Dreamers. 

BY  ARTHUR  SKETCHLEY. 
A  Match  In  the  Dark. 

BY  T.  W.  SPEIGHT. 
The  Mysteries  of  Heron  Pyfce. 

BY  R.A.  STERN  DALE. 
The  Afghan  Knife. 

BY  BERTHA  THOMAS. 
Cressida. 
Proud  Malsie. 
The  VIoilnPlayer. 


Popular  Novbls,  continutd — 
BY  WALTER  THORNBURY, 
Tales  for  the  Marin< 


BY  T.  ADOLPHUS  TROLLOPS. 
Diamond  Cut  Diamond. 

BY  ANTHONY  TROLLOPS. 
The  Way  We  Live  Now. 
The  American  Senator. 

BY  MARK  TWAIN. 

Tom  Sawyer. 

An  Idle  Excursion. 

A  Pleasure  Trip  on  the  Continent 
of  Europe. 

BY  SARAH  TYTLER. 
What  She  Came  Through. 

BY  LADY  WOOD. 
Sablna. 

BY  EDMUND  YATES. 
Castaway. 
The  Forlorn  Hope. 
Land  at  Last. 

ANONYMOUS. 
Paul  Ferroll. 
Why  Paul  Ferroll  Killed  his  Wife. 


Fcap.  8vo,  picture  covers,  la.  each. 

Jeff  Briggs's  Love  Story.     By  Brst 
Harte. 

The  Twins  of  Table  Mountain.  By 
Bret  Harts, 

Mrs.  Gainsborough's  Diamonds.  By 
Julian  Hawthorne. 

Kathleen  Mavourneen.    By  Aathor 
of  "  That  Lass  o'  Lowrie's." 

Lindsay's  Luck.     By  the  Aathor  of 
"  That  Lass  o*  Lowrie's." 

Pretty   Polly   Pemberton.     By  the 

Author  of  "That  Lass  o'  Lowrie's,'* 

Trooping  with   Crows.      By   Mrs. 

PiRKIS. 

The  Professor's  Wife.    By  Leonard 
Graham. 

A  Double  Bond.    By  Linda  Villari. 

Esther's  Glove.  By  R.  E.  Francillon. 

The  Garden  that   Paid  the  Rent. 
By  Tou  Jerrold. 


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